The six armed men, who were caught in a stolen car during a roadblock at Grove, East Bank Demerara (EBD), last week, moments after they attempted to rob a Poultry Farmer, appeared before Magistrate Sunil Scarce at the Providence Magistrate’s Court today.
Steve Hercules, 30, of Sisters Village, West Bank Demerara; Nabadinghi Gobin, 33, of Charlotte Street, Bourda; Renard Khan, 31 of Cooper Street, Albouystown; Mark Prince, 39, of Parfait Harmonie, West Bank Demerara; Edward Skeete, 30, of Independence Boulevard and Marvin Blackman, 27, of South Ruimveldt, Georgetown were jointly charged with three counts of illegal possession of a firearm and three counts of illegal possession of ammunition.
The charges alleged that on April 10, 2018, at Grove, they had one Glock 9mm pistol with serial number FKA 452 and 11 rounds, one black Glock 9mm pistol with its serial number filed off and 11 rounds, one black Beretta Pistol with serial number PY 1467150 and 11 rounds and one Taurus pistol with its serial number filed out and six live rounds.
Five of the men pleaded not guilty to the charges, while Hercules pleaded guilty to all charges.
Hercules was charged separately with the fraudulent imitation of an identification mark of a registered motor vehicle that is to say PVV 6204. He pleaded guilty to the charge. He will be sentenced later today. The men were represented by George Thomas and were remanded to prison until April 20 where they are expected to face more charges.
Blackman, Gobin, Khan, Prince, and Skeete were jointly charged with the offence which alleged that on April 10 at Grove Public Road they conspired with Hercules to change the licence plate of motor car PVV 6204 to HC 4543. They denied the charge.
Hercules told the court that he was being paid $50,000 to pick up the firearms along with the other defendants.
“After being nabbed by the police I told them that the firearm was mine,” Hercules said.
Prosecutor, Adonie Inniss objected to the men being granted bail on the grounds that they were caught by the police red-handed in the vehicle with the firearms and that they have been charged with similar offences prior.
News Room had earlier reported that the men were intercepted in motor-car HC 4543, in which police found a sledgehammer, two pairs of unused latex gloves, $1,420 in cash, trade plates marked ‘Akbar 2’, a red haversack with the guns and ammunition inside.
These items were found on the floor of the car by the police and upon examination, police observed that the number PVV 6204 was engraved on the windscreen and lights of the car. The motor car was reportedly hijacked on March 25, 2018, at Princes Street, while its owner was working taxi.
Prior to the arrest of the six men, a Chinese businessman who operates a poultry farm, reported to police that he was at home with his two sons when at around 19:10 hrs, he heard someone breaking down his eastern door.
The businessman said he then saw four men inside his yard, raised an alarm and the men escaped in a silver grey Premio motor car number – HC 4543, which was parked on the southern side of his home.
