Lieutenant Colonel Tony Ross will know his fate today after a military jury late last night found him guilty of failing to effectively manage the army’s weapons store resulting in the theft of 30 high-powered rifles and five pistols two years ago.
Ross was charged with four counts of negligence of duty for the theft of the weapons, but he was freed of two of the charges, which were more administrative in nature. Judge Advocate Oslen Small, who presided over the case is expected to hand down his sentence today, Attorney-at-law Leslie Sobers, who represented Ross, told Stabroek News last night.
During the months-long court martial, five witnesses testified on behalf of the defence and six for the prosecution. Colonel Bruce Lovell was the President of the court, while attorney at-law, Melissa Yearwood represented the GDF.
The first charge against Ross alleged that on or about February 13, 2006, without proper authority, he instructed Warrant Officer Class 2 (WO2) Gordon to establish an arms store for personnel of the Ordnance Corps, an instruction, which he knew, or was reasonably expected to know, he had no authority to issue. He was found not guilty on this charge. The second charge alleged that he gave instructions to have weapon numbers assigned to soldiers of the Ordnance Corps for the purpose of issuing the weapons to the soldiers, Ross was also found not guilty on this charge. However, he was found guilty on the charges of failure to ensure that the keys to the keys cabinet were booked in at Defence Headquarters Operations Room, a duty that he knew or was reasonably expected to know, and during the period March 2005 to February 2006, failing to manage an effective booking in/out system for the keys ledger.
The GDF had quashed an earlier court-martial of Ross following President Bharrat Jagdeo’s appointment of several officers to the tops posts of the military last year. Ross was in charge of the army’s arms store when the 30 AK-47 rifles and five pistols were smuggled out some time in February 2006.
At the time of the quashing of the court-martial last year, Ross’s lawyers had been cross-examining witnesses put forward by the prosecution. Two witnesses were called to give evidence.
Ross was the commander of the Ordnance Corps, a unit responsible for the storage and distribution of weapons in the army. He is the first senior officer to be court-martialled over the disappearance of the weapons, which had sparked widespread public concern.
Warrant Officer John Peters was the first officer to be charged. He was found guilty on an offence relating to the missing weapons, but now retired chief of staff, Brigadier Edward Collins used his powers under the Defence Act to remit the sentence.
Peters, following a court-martial, was found guilty on charges of conduct and neglect to the prejudice of good order and military discipline. He was sentenced to one year detention and reduced to the rank of private. However, on August 16 Collins, utilizing the powers granted him under Section 111 (4) of the Defence Act 15:01, remitted the Warrant Officer’s sentence of detention. In effect, it meant that Peters no longer had to serve time in detention, but his conviction still stood, as did the sentence reducing him to the rank of private.
Additionally, the GDF had said that Peters would receive his benefits for serving in the force, but these would be in the rank of private.
Fourteen of the AK-47 rifles have been recovered so far, most of them found in the hands of criminals connected to the Buxton-based criminal gang.
Meanwhile, even as the court-martial is completed senior army sources said that the hunt to recover the other weapons was an ongoing exercise. The joint services, following the theft of the weapons, had conducted numerous raids across the Georgetown, East Coast and in Berbice. During the raids, the homes of several suspected drug dealers were targeted at which time cocaine and other illegal weapons were seized.
Speaking to Stabroek News earlier this year, a senior army officer had disclosed that the GDF had an idea who was responsible for the theft of the weapons.
The GDF had initially targeted Oliver Hinckson during its search for the weapons. The former army officer was later held and charged with possession of an illegal handgun, but there was never any evidence to charge him in connection with the missing army weapons.
