Latest update November 26th, 2024 1:00 AM
Jamaican charged for illegal entry
Christopher Paul
Milton Grant, a Jamaican citizen, was yesterday given the alternative of paying a $100,000 fine or serve six months in jail, after he pleaded guilty to illegal entry.
The accused was making his court appearance before Magistrate Nashaya Williams-Hatmin.
It is alleged that Grant, on November 15 last, using the Corentyne River, illegally entered Guyana by sea, without consent from an immigration officer.
According to police prosecutor Denise Griffith, at around 13:00hrs on the day in question, police on foot patrol duty stopped and searched a car in the vicinity of Alexander Village. Grant was in that car.
She added that the defendant was asked to produce the relevant documents, and he couldn’t. She further told the court that the defendant, however, gave the police his Jamaican identification card.
The prosecutor said that Grant told the arresting ranks that he left his “passport” with a friend in Suriname.
And Christopher Paul appeared before Magistrate Hazel Octive-Hamilton yesterday, charged for the unlawful possession of explosives.
Paul allegedly had a quantity of “squibs” in his possession without valid permit, on October 28 at Alexander Village. He pleaded guilty.
According to police prosecutor Seetram, at around 19:00 hrs, police ranks were on foot patrol in Alexander Village, during the Diwali celebrations, when they saw the defendant acting in a suspicious manner. They conducted a search of his person and found the items.
The prosecutor said that they found red, blue and yellow firecrackers in the defendant’s pants pockets.
Paul was told of the offence, and was taken to the Ruimveldt Police Station, where he was charged.
When asked by the presiding magistrate if he had anything to say, Paul said that it was not a quantity, but only six squibs. He added that he didn’t know that “squibs” were against the law, since he had lived most of his life in the interior.
He further told the court that he had collected the squibs from a friend, and begged for leniency.
As the magistrate was about to impose sentence, she realised that the arresting ranks had instituted a wrong charge against the defendant.
The magistrate then told the defendant, “I’m putting you on $10,000 bail, for the sake of justice, until the police can rectify the matter.”
The accused is expected to make his next court appearance on Friday.
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