Charles Gosling, the Mayor of Hamilton, hit back yesterday after a company that lost out when it loaned millions of dollars for a new hotel in the city said that American firms should avoid doing business in Bermuda.

Mexico Infrastructure Finance wrote to US Consul General Constance Dierman after the Supreme Court ruled on Wednesday that there was not enough evidence to proceed to trial against four people, including former mayor Graeme Outerbridge and Michael MacLean, head of Par-la-Ville Hotel and Residences, the proposed developer of the city’s Par-la-Ville car park, on a string of charges.

Ed Benevides, the secretary to the Corporation of Hamilton, and Mr MacLean’s wife, Yasmin, also charged in connection with the failed hotel deal, walked free from court as well.

Scot Fischer, a spokesman for MIF, wrote to Ms Dierman and said the company had taken a heavy loss.

He said it had “done nothing other than provide, in good faith, financing to support a hospitality project fully endorsed by the Corporation of Hamilton and Government of Bermuda”.

Mr Gosling told Ms Dierman in a letter, also sent to The Royal Gazette, that MIF “took a calculated commercial risk and it did not pay off”.

The mayor said that “MIF conveniently failed to mention MIF were only too well aware that there were concerns regarding the Corporation of Hamilton’s capacity to provide the security they were seeking”.

Mr Gosling said the firm had disregarded concerns raised by island lawyers that the Corporation might not have the capacity to enter such an arrangement — and that MIF had also “sought out insurance to cover any loss arising from the Corporation of Hamilton lacking this capacity”.

He added: “To put this financing in context, MIF agreed to lend $13 million to PLVHR properties and in six months to receive back $18 million. This was a highly lucrative deal and MIF were well aware of the risks.”

Puisne judge Charles-Etta Simmons said on Wednesday that she found no grounds to proceed with charges that Mr Outerbridge and Mr Benevides corruptly agreed to obtain property for the benefit of the MacLeans through the release of $15,449,858 from an escrow account at the Bank of New York.

Mr MacLean, Mr Outerbridge and Mr Benevides were also accused of dishonestly obtaining MIF’s money from the account. The MacLeans were charged with stealing $13.7 million from MIF and using proceeds of criminal conduct.

Cindy Clarke, the Deputy Director of Public Prosecutions, said last night that the Crown awaited the written reasons for Mrs Justice Simmons’ decision and would consider whether to appeal the ruling.

Ms Dierman declined to comment on MIF’s attack on the island. She said: “As this matter has been before the courts and an active case remains in New York, I can offer no comment.”

Mr Gosling refused to comment on whether Mr Benevides, who had been put on administrative leave, had returned to his job at the Corporation. The Privy Council in London on Monday ruled in a civil case that the Corporation of Hamilton did not have authority to give the guarantee for the project.

Mr Gosling, whose administration inherited the problem after it won municipal elections in 2015, told the US Consul that the Corporation had offered to provide MIF with opinions of leading counsel that the city was not liable for the money for the firm “to consider in order to avoid the cost of litigating this matter”.

He added: “MIF refused this offer. MIF’s assertion in its letter that the Corporation ‘refused to honour its guarantee’ is thus utterly wrong and misleading and MIF knows this, having lost on three separate occasions in three separate courts. There was no guarantee in law and the Corporation could not pay it without rendering its officers liable for breach of their duty.”

Mr Gosling wrote: “Sometimes the courts make decisions one doesn’t like or agree with.”

However, Mr Fischer said the mayor’s letter “refutes absolutely nothing of substance from our letter”.

He said: “We interpret that by failing to do so, he inherently accepts those facts as accurate, and, of course, we stand by the full content of our letter.”

Mr Fischer said that a separate court case in New York would continue.

• To read both letters sent to the US Consul General, click on the PDFs below “Related Media”.

• It is The Royal Gazette’s policy not to allow comments on stories regarding court cases. As we are legally liable for any libellous or defamatory comments made on our website, this move is for our protection as well as that of our readers.