`A sniffer dog identified various players' The Technical Director warned players that he had written a report to the BFA and should they get into trouble with drugs, he would release the content of his report to the appropriate authorities.

Nonetheless, the consensus at the end of the meeting appeared to be that this was the end of the matter, that the message had been conveyed clearly to the suspected players, all of whom had agreed not to be involved in drugs in Jamaica.

Hence, it came as a surprise to the other officials when, later that day, the Technical Director recommended to the head of Delegation, and by his fax to the General Secretary of the BFA, that the suspected players should be sent home. The record is not clear as to whether the recommendation related to the three players who had admitted to being smokers, or to all seven of the suspected players.

In any case, and in the absence of proof of smoking in Jamaica, no decision was taken then to send any players home.

It was at this meeting that one of the three players who had confessed to being a smoker, who had also complained of pain in his knee, admitted that he had faked his injury. It is not clear whether he had faked it to be sent home for that reason rather than for drugs and r indiscipline.

Thursday December 1, 1994 Because of injuries to members of the team, Shawn Riley and Tokia Russell were summoned to Jamaica.

Friday December 2, 1994 This was the day of the first match against Canada. No flag or anthem had been taken to Jamaica by the officials. The game was drawn. Riley and Russell arrived in Jamaica.

Saturday December 3, 1994 There was light training and a team meeting.

Sunday December 4, 1994 The second match against Canada was held. There was still no flag or anthem.

However, it was a good match and a good 2-0 win for Bermuda. The team advanced to the second round. The head of Delegation decided to send one of the players home for bad behaviour and indiscipline.

Mr. Russ Ford, who was in Jamaica as a free-lance reporter, had a discussion with some team officials and sounded a general warning about drugs and the likelihood that bags and players would be checked in Miami.

Monday December 5, 1994 BFA President Richard Thompson and the player who had been disciplined for misbehaviour left for Bermuda.

Tuesday December 6, 1994 The first match against Jamaica was played. There was still no flag or anthem.

The game was drawn 1-1.

Wednesday December 7, 1994 Preparation took place for the big game the following day.

Thursday December 8, 1994 This was decision day -- the final game against Jamaica. The Bermuda flag was raised and the anthem played (sent by BFA General Secretary). It was a good game, which Bermuda won 1-0. Next stop -- Argentina. There were celebrations that night and rightly so.

Friday December 9, 1994 Time to go home. The Technical Director, due to a serious ear-ache, could not accompany the contingent back to Bermuda.

Baggage was loaded on to the bus at the hotel and the Bermuda contingent boarded. On the bus, during the journey to the airport, the head of Delegation warned that they could receive a friendly or unfriendly reception at the airport in Bermuda. Hence, he said, the carrying of any illegal material should be seriously considered. If anyone had anything on them that they did not want to be caught with, they should take the opportunity beforehand to get rid of it.

It seems to us that this warning, was insufficiently definitive -- too little, too late. Drugs seem not to have been specifically mentioned, neither was the possibility of being searched in Miami. In any case, the luggage was on another bus, so the players had little opportunity to remove anything. They boarded the flight to Miami.

On leaving the aircraft in Miami, the head of Delegation was approached by a person, later identified as a Drug Enforcement Agency agent, who inquired if they were the Bermuda Under 23 Football Team. Upon confirmation, they were lined up immediately outside the aircraft, then conducted to the terminal where they were separated from other passengers.

A sniffer dog identified various players, and luggage and body searches followed, seven players being found in possession of about eight pounds of marijuana between them. They were handcuffed and detained while other players were permitted to board the aircraft for New York. Faced with the dilemma of whether to stay with them or continue on to New York, the head of Delegation decided to catch the flight and start things moving in the way of legal representation, etc, upon arrival in New York. This led to accusations by other officials that he had abandoned the seven.

The seven players were kept in detention from then, December 9th, 1994 until their release on pre-trial bail on December 19, 1994.

Obviously, plea bargaining followed and, finally, the seven appeared in the Circuit Court of the Eleventh Judicial Circuit in Dade County, Florida on February 9, 1995. They entered a plea of Nolo Contendere, explained as follows in the (American) Webster's New International Dictionary (second edition) as follows: "Nolo contendere (L, I do not wish to contend.) Law. A plea by the defendant in a criminal prosecution, which, without admitting guilt, subjects him to conviction, but does not preclude him from denying the truth of the charges in a collateral proceeding.

The 'plea agreement' is as follows: The STATE OF FLORIDA and the Defendants MESHAK WADE, HERBERT DILLAS, SHAWN RILEY, KEISHON SMITH, DONNIE CHARLES and KAVIN JENNINGS enter into the following agreement: (1) Each of the defendants shall plead NOLO CONTENDERE (NO CONTEST) to the charge of Possession of Marijuana. This plea is made pursuant to Fla.R.Crim.P.

3.172.

(2) Adjudication of guilt will be WITHHELD.

(3) Each defendant will be sentenced to credit for the time he served from the date of his arrest December 9, 1994 until the date of his release on pre- trial bail on December 19, 1994.

(4) The information filed in Case Number 94-41722A, B, C, D, E, F represents the entirety of all charges the State of Florida intends to pursue based upon the defendants' conduct within the State of Florida on December 9, 1994.

(5) The parties acknowledge that this is the entire agreement between the State of Florida and the defendants. There are no other agreements or understandings between the parties.

Respectfully submitted, DAVID WEINSTEIN, ESQ Assistant State Attorney 1350 N W 12 Avenue Miami, Florida 33136 BY: DAVID WEINSTEIN Assistant State Attorney I represent MESHAK WADE, HERBERT DILLAS, SHAWN RILEY, KEISHON SMITH, DONNIE CHARLES AND KAVIN JENNINGS as their legal counsel. I have carefully reviewed this agreement with each of them. To the best of my knowledge, their decision to enter into this agreement is informed and voluntary.

February 9, 1995 H T SMITH Attorney for Defendants (Each of us has received this agreement from our attorney, H T SMITH Esq. Each of us has read it, been advised by legal counsel, and hereby acknowledge that it fully sets forth the agreement with the State Attorney's Office for the Eleventh Judicial Circuit of Florida. Each of us states that there have been no additional promises or representations made to us in connection with this matter. Each of us affixes our signatures to this agreement freely and voluntarily and with a clear and complete understanding of all that is contained within this agreement.) The seventh person arrested in Miami, Tokia Russell -- a juvenile, was dealt with similarly.

This may be the place to emphasise that a most severe consequence to any Bermudian of a conviction for drugs (in Bermuda or elsewhere) is that if the conviction comes to the attention of the US Authorities, the Bermudian will, by American Law, almost certainly be banned from travel to or via the United States. Thereafter, admission to the United States is possible only by way of making application for a waiver.

The Board understands that this `conviction' is considered by the US Authorities as grounds for placing the seven Players on their `stop-list'.

Similarly, the Board understands that Canada and the UK treat the possession of drugs just as seriously as the US. If a person is found in possession of drugs in those countries, or already has a drug conviction, they could well find themselves denied entry, on arrival, as an inadmissible person.

*** MATTERS ARISING FROM THE SEQUENCE OF EVENTS WERE MEMBERS OF THE TEAM SMOKING MARIJUANA IN JAMAICA? As a consequence of information received and evidence presented, the Board believes that some players were smoking marijuana in Jamaica.

Although there was no conclusive evidence (ie: no officials saw any of the players smoking marijuana), there were strong suspicions.

It was reported to the Board of Inquiry that the first such suspicion occurred during a practice match with a local team. Jamaican spectators watching the match commented or observed that many of Bermuda's players playing in the match were high. The captain of the Bermuda team heard the comments and was sufficiently concerned to report them to the Bermuda officials.

This led to a team meeting with the head of Delegation, but it was concluded that the subject of smoking marijuana had not really been addressed -- or had been insufficiently addressed. The following day, the Technical Director, the coach and the physio held a meeting with the players they suspected of smoking marijuana, either based on their appearance and r performance. The suspected players were sternly warned that smoking marijuana would not be tolerated and that they would be sent home immediately if found out. At this meeting, three players admitted that they were smokers but it was never established whether they had smoked marijuana since their arrival in Jamaica. Neither was it denied.

Another incident that aroused suspicion was when one player asked not to be included in the team because of a knee injury. The physio could not diagnose a definite injury and, as a result, recommended that the player should be sent home to see a specialist. However, when the player found out that the teams in the competition would not be drug-tested, he suddenly recovered and wanted to be included in the team for the first game of the competition. It was during this meeting that he admitted he had faked the injury because he wanted to avoid being drug-tested, therefore putting the team in jeopardy and causing himself and the team to suffer personal disgrace.

A very senior journalist also informed us that a reliable source in attendance in Jamaica had informed him that there was smoking going on there by some of the players. This was confirmed by a player who was interviewed by the Bermuda Police in Miami.

One Bermudian official who traveled with the team, said that given the demographics of the team, the prevalence of drug use in their age group and the easy availability of drugs in Jamaica, he would be very surprised if smoking of marijuana did not take place while in Jamaica.

Many of those we interviewed were able to `name' players in the squad who were smokers in Bermuda and expressed the opinion that they would be very surprised if they were not smoking in Jamaica.

WERE THE MIAMI SEVEN KNOWINGLY CARRYING MARIJUANA? The answer to this question will probably never be known with certainty. Like many members of the public, the Board felt it was a pity the case was disposed of in the United States in such a way that many questions were left unanswered. Among the most important of these questions are the following: Why did a television journalist who had been with the team in Jamaica state publicly that players other than those arrested in Miami had been asked to smuggle drugs in their luggage? Why, in Miami, did one player insist to US Customs that he had only one checked bag, even though there were two claim tags attached to his documents? US Customs later noticed an unclaimed bag on the tarmac. When they inspected it, they found it contained personal items belonging to that player together with a quantity of marijuana. The player also had a key which fitted the lock of the suitcase.

Why was another player caught by US Customs trying to remove the sneakers he was wearing? As a result, Customs spiked the soles of the sneakers and discovered marijuana.

Why did yet another player have drugs in two body belts in his hand luggage? It was interesting to the Board that five of the seven players who Bermuda officials suspected of smoking in Jamaica were arrested in Miami.

In that the matter has been before the courts in America, the Board has not felt able to express an opinion. The public will reach their own conclusions, and in the circumstances, the players who were arrested in Miami will have to live with these unanswered questions always hanging over their heads.

C: SHOULD SUSPECTED PLAYERS HAVE BEEN SENT HOME? We feel obliged to comment specifically on this question since the Technical Director's recommendation that the suspected players should be sent home generated considerable publicity and led to inferences that the BFA were, at best, less than decisive and at worst, part of a cover-up.

As we previously explained, following the meeting on Wednesday November 30th, officials present were of the opinion that "the consensus at the end of the meeting appeared to be that this was the end of the matter . . . '' Certainly the other officials were of the opinion that the Technical Director was a part of that consensus -- hence their surprise when, some hours later, he recommended to the head of Delegation, and, in a fax to the BFA, that the suspected players should be sent home.

Perhaps he was accepting at face value Clause 71 of the Agreement signed by the players with the BFA, one sentence of which reads: "Any player suspected or found engaging in the misuse of drugs will be suspended from the National Programme.'' The BFA's dilemma was obvious. The team seemed set to do well. No player had been found smoking in Jamaica and no player had admitted smoking in Jamaica.

Hence they decided, rightly in our view, that any decision to send players home should be made by their representatives on the spot, specifically by the head of Delegation. For these same reasons, the head of Delegation declined to accept the recommendation of the Technical Director.

*** COMMENTS AND RECOMMENDATIONS ARISING SELECTION OF TEAM Comment If we appear to have been overly preoccupied with the question of drugs in Jamaica: (a) This was the focus of our terms of reference.

(b) In view of the arrests in Miami, this too was the focus of reports written by Team officials following their return to Bermuda -- save for the Technical Director whose reports originated from Jamaica.

While it could not be otherwise, this focus tends to obscure the positive aspects of Bermuda's participation in these qualifying games: (1) The application and preparation for them.

(2) The sacrifices made by players and officials.

(3) The strict regime of training in Jamaica and the conscientious effort of the officials to check on their charges at all hours of the night.

(4) The qualifying of the Bermuda Team for the next round of the competition against tough competition.

So the Board feels it should stress that these achievements should not be taken way from all those concerned.

Arising from these observations, we make some comments and recommendations in summary form, which should apply to the various aspects of National Teams chosen by the BFA. There is little evidence of serious background checks having been done on the individuals selected, and no evidence of concern about drugs by the BFA. This was notwithstanding the team was going to Jamaica, notorious for its availability of marijuana, and returning via Miami, which is sometimes referred to as the marijuana capital of the world, because it is a major point of entry into the US for marijuana.

The potential for trouble, albeit this assessment comes after the event, may be summarised in the comment of the team physio to the Board in his response to allegations of drug use by seven players based on "appearance or performance''. He replied that it was possible that it had nothing to do with drugs but "clearly, in the light of the demographics of the team -- all being Under 23, and because of where we were -- in Jamaica . . . '' Even after these suspicions had been made known to the BFA, Shawn Riley, who was facing a charge in Bermuda of possession of heroin, was sent to Jamaica, his word being accepted that he had no problem.

We have also taken note of coach Mark Trott's letter to the BFA dated November 9, 1994, the first paragraph of which reads as follows: Re: Drug Testing of Players "I would like for the record to show that as coach of the U23 team I feel that maybe the time has come where the BFA needs to take appropriate steps in respect of the players currently in training for the Pan Am matches. By appropriate steps, I am specifically referring to action that will ensure that our participation against Canada will not be jeopardised. In addition, that these steps ensure that there will not be any embarrassing situations to the BFA as a result of a player from Bermuda being tested positive for any illegal substance. As we know, this would result in automatic disqualification and public humiliation both locally and internationally.'' This seems to have produced no response from the BFA.

This is not to say that the BFA had no concern about drugs. On the contrary, in 1993 they commissioned a study and in September of that year received what we read as an excellent Report from Mr. C Walton Brown Jr of Research Innovations Limited, entitled: "The Betterment of Football in Bermuda Through Club Reform and a Drug-Testing Policy''.

This Report is not only useful, but is far-sighted and courageous in its background analysis of clubs and football in Bermuda. It is an analysis that, as a consequence of all our interviews, we are able to endorse wholeheartedly.

In fact, because we believe it so accurately and insightfully provides the background for the way forward, we are attaching it as Appendix 4.

Among its recommendations was one that the BFA "endorse a drug policy'' and "develop an operational plan for regular testing at major competitions and training periods with a view to eliminating the use of banned drugs at or near the time of competition''. But the Report's reference was to "the rationale for testing advanced by FIFA''. This would not have required testing for marijuana, the main problem in football in Bermuda, although we note that the English Football Association is now testing for marijuana.

But over a year later, there was little if any progress to report arising from these recommendations. Having said that, we appreciate the difficulties facing the BFA in the implementation of policies -- especially potentially controversial ones. The Executive is elected by the affiliates with whom it is difficult to achieve a consensus, much less anything like unanimous support.

The result is often paralysis.

However, in February 1995 the Board did receive from the BFA "An Immediate Plan for the Bermuda Football Association Players Representing National Teams'', and subsequently we have received "The Bermuda Football Association Athlete Assistance Programme'', which is attached as Appendix 5.

Note is taken that the BFA's banned drug list includes marijuana, which is not a drug banned by FIFA, but which is a drug banned by the National Collegiate Athletic Association and the United States Olympic Committee. We generally endorse their plan, although our recommendation on drug testing is, we believe, rather more direct and somewhat less punitive. But we compliment the BFA, if not for their action, at least for their reaction.

We will close this section with the question "Could the arrests of the seven players in Miami have been avoided?'' The answer is most certainly. It is surprising, admittedly in hindsight, that following all the allegations and suspicions of drug use in Jamaica, it was not more obvious to the head of Delegation and other team officials.

This is put in clear context in the coach's report, following his return, which reads: "In closing this report, I can say that there was ample opportunity to have warned the team and possibly even check their bags before we left the hotel on our day of departure. Our bus was over 25 minutes late and furthermore, Mr.

Tyrrell as head of Delegation, could have insisted that the players and officials meet earlier to have a thorough debriefing. This did not happen but instead 10 minutes into our ride to the airport Mr. Tyrrell warned the players they would receive two types of receptions upon their arrival in Bermuda, namely `friendly and unfriendly' and because of this, if they had anything that would get them in trouble then they should do something about it.

However, this warning should have come before we left the hotel grounds and in a closed team meeting before we departed. Since the players were on one bus and their luggage on another with our equipment man, quite frankly, when we arrived at the airport there was no realistic way that players could then do anything to get rid of anything unwanted. It would have been very suspicious to see players discarding items in a very public place. Furthermore, Mr.

Tyrrell's comments never once addressed the possibility of being searched in Miami. They squarely reflected around our arrival in Bermuda, hence, I am certain, Mr. Tyrrell's intent though meant to be good was lost as players probably assumed nothing would happen to them upon arrival in Miami.'' This responsibility was not Mr. Tyrrell's alone and in our view it is unfair to lay at the feet of the head of Delegation the sole responsibility for this lack of initiative. There is no evidence to indicate that the coach, for instance, at that point warned the players, or insisted that baggage to be checked-in and hand luggage should be searched by officials.

Recommendations (1) When a team is being selected to represent Bermuda abroad, a thorough background check should be made on each player under consideration -- with parents, police, employers, schools etc.

(2) At the time of selection, as part of his signed contract for selection, each player should be tested for drugs as suggested in the BFA policy. If, as was the case for Jamaica, the team is in training here for some while, should anyone initially test positive, he should be offered help. If he accepts, he should be kept on the programme with regular testing to determine his progress. Obviously, should there be no signs of improvement, he should be dropped from the squad.

(3) At an early stage of their training in Bermuda, players should be addressed by representatives of the relevant agencies in Bermuda including the National Drug Commission, the Police and Customs.

(4) As an example, on an annual basis, the executive of the Bermuda Football Association should offer themselves for drug testing.

(5) When leaving to return to Bermuda from a stay overseas, team officials, having had instructions from the Bermuda Regiment and the Police, should thoroughly search persons and bags, sealing bags on completion.

TEAM OFFICIALS Comment These were all persons of exemplary character, dedicated to football, some of whom provided their services at considerable personal sacrifice. We commend their interest and dedication. There was an obvious and continuing tension between the head of Delegation and the Technical Director which was unhelpful.

In view of developments we are treating this as sub-judice. It was also obvious to us that the head of Delegation was rather 'out of the loop' with respect to the other officials.