Thirty-seven-year-old Edinho Lewis, of Lot 25 Shopping Plaza, South Ruimveldt Gardens, appeared before Chief Magistrate (ag) Sherdel Isaacs-Marcus yesterday at the Georgetown Magistrate’s Court where he was charged with five offences including possession of an AK-47 rifle.
It was alleged that on June 8, at Lot 126 Da Silva Street, Newtown, Kitty, he had in his possession 544.5 grammes of cannabis, and 1,079 grams of cocaine all for the purpose of trafficking.
It was also alleged that he had in his possession, three Colt AR 15 magazines, one AK-47 magazine, three Glock magazines, four rounds of .223 ammunition, nine rounds of 9mm ammunition, 830 rounds of 7.62 ammunition, one AK-47 rifle, and a Glock 26 pistol, without being the holder of a firearm licence. Lewis pleaded not guilty to all the charges.
Attorney-at-law Bernard DaSilva, who represented Lewis and made an application for his bail, told the magistrate that his client is a former Guyanese national table tennis player and is now working as a freelance tennis coach. He said that Lewis rents an apartment as an Airbnb at the address read in the charge and at the time it was being rented to a friend and another person for a period of two weeks.
DaSilva then requested reasonable bail in accordance with Section 94 of the narcotic Act. He continued with his application, telling the court that the day prior to the raid the apartment was occupied by the friend and another person, however, on the day of the raid, his client ventured to the address in Kitty to check for any damage and almost immediately upon him entering the premises, the police used a window to gain entry to the building.
The attorney noted that his client still lives with his mother in South Ruimveldt Gardens, and the area where the illegal substance was allegedly found can be described as a laundry room which was not accessed by his client.
DaSilva told the court that his client was made to lie on the floor of a room in the building with a gun pointed to his head while the search was being carried out. He also alleged that the police showed his client the items found in the laundry room and told him that he must admit ownership. Further, the police attempted to forge the signature of Lewis until he intervened.
DaSilva told the magistrate that he was not disregarding the allegations which were serious, but they should be treated as such and his client should be treated as innocent until proven otherwise. He assured the court that if granted bail his client will abide with any conditions, including reporting to CID headquarters and lodging his passport.
However, the prosecutor objected to bail being granted considering the prevalence and seriousness of the offence along with the penalty attached. He told the magistrate that the apprehension of Lewis was as a result of an ongoing intelligence-led operation by the Guyana Police Force.
The court heard that on the day in question, at around 23.00 hours, a party of police visited the address at Lot 126 DaSilva Street where they met with Lewis, and after identifying themselves as police officers they requested to search after telling him the reason for their presence. Lewis then allowed the ranks in through the front door of the premises.
While searching the bedroom area of the home, they found the Glock 26 pistol on his bed, and in the laundry room, at the side of the washing machine, the AK-47 was found in a black sack. On top of the washing machine was discovered a quantity of a white powdery substance suspected to be cocaine, and inside, the suspected cannabis and ammunition were found.
Lewis was then informed of the allegations and placed under caution. The police said that in a video interview he admitted that he lived at the address where the items were found. Subsequent checks showed that Lewis was never the holder of a firearm licence.
Concerning the renting of the apartment, the magistrate asked for a tenancy agreement to be produced to which the defendant told the magistrate that he did have one and will have his attorney make it available at the next court date.
Magistrate Isaacs-Marcus refused bail since no special reasons were advanced by the defence.
The matter was adjourned to July 12 for disclosure.
