��ɫtv

Bush told The Associated Press in a statement that he rejected, denied and pleaded not guilty to what he called “this evil plot” and “malicious accusation.”

“All I have to say in relation to this, the latest in the series of malicious charges against me is the “Truth will come out,” he wrote. “This is done by someone I have never had any contact with.”

The arrest was the former premier’s most recent brush with the law.

Bush was investigated and found not guilty nearly a decade ago on charges including theft and abuse of office. He also pleaded not guilty to groping a female employee at a casino in Florida in 2017, and the charges were later dropped.

Bush pleaded not guilty after being charged with indecently assaulting two women last year at a regional tourism event held in the Cayman Islands, a British overseas territory in the western Caribbean Sea. He is awaiting trial in that case.

Bush stepped down as premier in December 2012 after facing a no-confidence vote. He resigned as speaker of Parliament in October 2022 following accusations of sexual harassment, which he denied.