A prison officer is now behind bars after he was charged yesterday over an illegal gun that was found by police hidden in a car that he was driving.
Christopher Elias appeared before Magistrate Leron Daly in a Georgetown court, which heard that on July 24, at Princes Street, he allegedly had in his possession a .38 revolver and five rounds of matching ammunition without being the holder of a firearm licence.
On the same day, Elias is also accused of behaving in a manner intended to provoke Orlando Harris at Mandela Avenue.
Elias, 24, pleaded not guilty to all three charges.
According to prosecutor Kevin London, Elias was in a vehicle that was stopped and searched by ranks, who found the weapon and ammunition in its air vent.
However, attorney Melvin Duke, who appeared on behalf of Elias, told the court that his client, a member of the Guyana Prison Service for over six years, was not the only person in the vehicle at the time when the gun and ammunition were found.
He further stated that the vehicle does not belong to Elias and was given to him to operate. He claimed that when the weapon was found it was old and rusted.
He then proceeded to make a bail application for Elias, based on his service as a Prison Officer and the fact that the weapon and ammunition were not found on him. However, Magistrate Daly denied bail and adjourned the matter to August 15.
