FIVE men, including an ex-cop, were on Monday remanded to prison without bail on charges of being in possession of a number of house-breaking implements.
The five, who were also found to be in possession of a firearm and 13 rounds of matching ammunition, were placed before the New Amsterdam Magistrates Court where the matter was heard.
They are former policeman, Trevon McKenzie, 28, of Glasgow Village, East Bank Berbice; Michael Embrack, 32, of Fort Ordinance Housing Scheme; Marlon Henry, 30, of Angoy’s Avenue, New Amsterdam; Seon Brown, aged 22, of Dazzel Housing Scheme, East Coast Demerara; and Jomo Archer, 26, of Pilot Street, New Amsterdam.
The charges followed the police’s interception around 01:30hrs on Saturday of the motorcar, PNN 7771, in which the five were travelling on the Glasgow Public Road.
The quintet was nabbed by ranks from Central and Reliance Police Stations who had joined forces to mount a mobile patrol following reports of several breakages within the Glasgow, East Bank Berbice community.
The tactic paid off when a search of the vehicle, after the five were ordered out, unearthed a wig, a screwdriver, a length of rope, a crow bar, a firearm and thirteen matching rounds of ammunition.
Upon their arrest, the men were all taken to Central Police Station, where the charges were instituted.
Police Corporal Leon Robertson, prosecuting, said McKenzie also faces bribery charges for allegedly accepting a $6M bribe to avoid prosecution for trafficking in narcotics, while Embrack, who was out on bail before his recent arrest, has a robbery-under-arms matter pending.
And so, too, has Henry, who also faces rape and possession of narcotics charges. Brown has break-and-enter and larceny, and robbery-under-arms matters pending, while Archer has a charge of break and enter and larceny before the lower courts.
In light of the foregoing string of **, Robertson objected to pre-trial liberty, on the grounds that the five men are known to the police, and are on bail, having cases in the lower courts.
However, Defence Counsel Charrandas Persaud asked that his clients be granted bail, since it is well nigh impossible for all five men to be in possession of the gun and ammunition that were found in the vehicle.
He also said there was still the matter of who was in control of the car to consider, as is the fact that the vehicle was rented, and as such the items found in it could very well have been placed there before the men took possession of it.
Persaud further contended that the mere fact that the defendants are known by the police is not sufficient reason for bail to be refused, as the men were not stopped as they were attempting to enter a house; and neither were the firearm and ammunition found in their respective possession.
He further sought to remind the court that his clients are on bail, have been attending their court hearings, and as such sees no reason why they would skip bail this time around.
Meanwhile, Magistrate Alex Moore, before whom the men appeared, while remanding them to prison noted the relative rarity of the police objection, and ordered that the vehicle be returned to its rightful owner after it would have been scrutinised for evidential value.
The case is fixed for hearing on June 2.
