A father of five, who said he kept an illegal shotgun and ammunition for hunting, was ordered to pay a fine and serve three years in prison, when he appeared before Magistrate Hazel Octive-Hamilton yesterday at the Georgetown Magistrate’s Court.
Derrick Joseph of Aruka River in the North West District pleaded guilty to the charge of unlawful possession of a firearm and ammunition.
On April 1 this year at Aruka, Joseph, without lawful authority, had in his possession a 20-gauge single barrel shotgun and a 20-gauge cartridge without being the holder of a valid firearm licence.
Prosecutor Robert Clement stated that on the day in question around 16:00 hrs, the police acting upon a report of theft in the Aruka area, observed Joseph acting in a suspicious manner. They conducted a search on his person and the cartridge was found in his right-side pants pocket. The police then conducted a search in the area where Joseph had been sitting, and the firearm was discovered under a piece of wood next to him.
The prosecutor stated that Joseph had admitted in a caution statement that he had bought the firearm from a man called “Hendricks” who he had worked with in Venezuela.
Joseph corroborated what the prosecutor had said, adding, that when “Hendricks deh going back to Venezuela I buy de gun fuh $2,000.” He said that he only used the gun for hunting and asked that the court sympathize with him since he has five children to take care of.
The magistrate then informed Joseph, “whether you were using the gun to maim a person or even an animal, it is still illegal to have an unlicensed gun.”
Joseph then told the magistrate that this was his first time in court and asked for a light sentence. The magistrate subsequently ordered that Joseph pay a fine of $75,000 along with a three-year prison term.
