A twenty-six-year-old man who allegedly robbed a woman at gunpoint of a gold chain and another who robbed a man at knifepoint of a quantity of items were both remanded to prison on Friday when they appeared before Magistrate Hazel Octive-Hamilton at the George-town Magistrate’s Court.
Derwin Harding was not required to plead to the indictable charge of robbery under arms but he pleaded not guilty to the charge of unlawful possession of a firearm.
Meanwhile, Curt McAllister, 18, was not required to plead to the indictable charge of robbery under arms.
It is alleged that on November 5, Harding used a gun to rob Evan Ryan of a gold chain valued $90,000 and on the same day when the police arrested him, he reportedly had in his possession a .32 revolver without being the owner of a valid firearm license. It is alleged that on November 6, McAllister used a knife to rob Christopher Swanson of a wallet, a USA driver’s licence, a quantity of cash and some documents, all valued $21,000.
In the Harding case, Prosecutor Desire Fowler asked for an early trial date since Ryan was due to return to Trinidad on November 28. Fowler had asked in the McAllister case that the arresting officers locate Swanson who may be out of the jurisdiction.
The magistrate subsequently ordered that both Harding and McAllister be remanded to prison. Harding will return to court on November 11 while McAllister will return on November 26.