A CONSTRUCTION worker was remanded to prison by City Magistrate Fabayo Azore on Wednesday for the illegal possession of a gun.
Hubert Clark, 21, of Beterverwagting Housing Scheme, East Coast Demerara, was represented by Dexter Todd and pleaded not guilty to the charge. It is alleged that on May 20, 2017 at Stabroek Market, Georgetown he had a .38 pistol in his possession when he is not a licensed firearm holder.
Police Prosecutor Simone Payne objected to bail based on the seriousness and the penalty attached to the offence. The prosecutor alleged that the firearm was found in a bag which the accused had in his possession. However, Clark’s attorney explained that on the day in question, the man stopped at the Stabroek Market to buy groceries while on his way home.
According to the lawyer, while at the market, Clark met a colleague who gave him a bag to keep, while he [the colleague] ventured to the back of the market to return. The lawyer said that while the colleague left, police arrived and searched Clark, during which the gun was found inside the said bag.
The attorney accused the police of conducting an “unbalanced investigation” and noted that they refuse heed to his client claims. In a lengthy bail application, the lawyer requested that the gun be tested for fingerprints. Magistrate Azore nevertheless refused bail and remanded him until June 13, 2017.