Opposition Leader Pennelope Beckles is calling on Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar to tell the nation if she intends to keep Caroni Central MP David Lee as a member of her Cabinet, after he was arrested on Tuesday on fraud charges.

Beckles' call came in a press release on October 7, hours after a police press release confirmed that arrest warrants were issued for Lee – the Minister of Housing – and businessman Hugh Leong Poi, following an application by the DPP under Section 23(5) of the Indictable Offences (Preliminary Enquiry) Act, Chapter 12:01.

In September 2022, Lee and Leong Poi were charged with conspiring to defraud the State of $1.4 million in taxes related to the importation of a Mercedes Benz G63 AMG valued at over $2 million.