Prosecutor’s Office expected to refer ACP to Government on GEBE cyberattack report

GREAT BAY--The Public Prosecutor’s Office of St. Maarten is expected to respond to the Association for Consumer Protection St. Maarten, ACP-SXM, as it does with all official correspondence. However, any response to ACP-SXM’s request for access to the “Freya” investigation report will likely direct the organization to the Government of St. Maarten.

The Government of St. Maarten was the opdrachtgever, or instructing party, in relation to the Public Prosecutor’s Office investigation into the March 2022 cyberattack on NV GEBE. As such, the Public Prosecutor’s Office is not in a position to release the report directly to ACP-SXM.

The Public Prosecutor’s Office provided its investigative findings to the Government of St. Maarten in June 2022. The report was submitted to then Prime Minister Silveria Jacobs, who responded on behalf of the Government of St. Maarten that same month.

The matter has returned to public attention after ACP-SXM formally wrote to the Public Prosecutor’s Office requesting access to the Freya investigation report, clarification on the formal status of the investigation, and consideration of whether the probe into the March 2022 ransomware attack on NV GEBE should be reopened or supplemented.

ACP-SXM’s letter, dated June 18, 2026, was submitted by its President and Chairperson, drs. Peggy-Ann Richardson, on behalf of consumers and the wider public of St. Maarten.

In its correspondence, ACP-SXM stated that the matter remains of public concern because NV GEBE is the country’s sole public utilities company and because residents and commercial consumers were directly affected by the 2022 cyberattack.

The ransomware attack, attributed to the criminal organization “Black Byte,” was discovered on March 17, 2022. According to ACP-SXM, the attack resulted in the encryption of NV GEBE’s customer database, financial records and business data.

ACP-SXM referred to the June 27, 2022 public communication from the Public Prosecutor’s Office and the Police Force of St. Maarten, which confirmed that the Freya investigation report had been submitted to the Government of St. Maarten in its capacity as sole shareholder of NV GEBE.

‍

‍