A young man who claims he was wrongfully arrested by police has been released on bail after a court heard that he snatched a woman’s shoulder bag.
Joshua Haynes, 20, of Lot 173 Pineapple Street, East Ruimveldt, Georgetown, was placed on $100,000 bail by Chief Magistrate Ann McLennan when he appeared at the Georgetown Magistrate’s Courts and denied the robbery charge.
It is alleged that on July 3, at Thomas and Middle streets, Georgetown, he stole from the person of a woman, a shoulder bag valued at $2,000, containing a cellphone valued $10,000, cosmetics valued $2,000 and $119,000 cash.
Haynes denied the charge and told the court that he doesn’t know where the police made up the charge from. He said that he was at the Georgetown Public Hospital after he was involved in an accident. A car knocked him down while he was riding his bicycle home from work at the Meadow Bank wharf. He said that the police were at the hospital and they approached him while he was with his mother who took him there. He added that the police brought up the allegation to him before arresting him.
However, the police prosecutor told the court that at about 8:30 am on July 3, the woman was standing at the corner of the two streets when the man snatched her bag containing the items. He subsequently escaped on a motorcycle but was later arrested on Vlissengen Road. The Court heard that the man had the bag containing the items on him when he was arrested. The prosecutor also objected to bail citing that Haynes has a pending escape from lawful custody charge before the court.
However the Magistrate overruled the prosecutor’s objection and released Haynes on $100,000 bail. The matter was adjourned until July 21.
Last September, Haynes was placed on $50,000 bail after he denied the charge which stated that on August 30, 2020, at Ruimveldt Police Station, while being in custody pending investigations into a simple larceny allegation against him, he escaped. Senior Magistrate Leron Daly had read the charge to him.
