Gunmen get 12 years

That was how Justice Carlisle Greaves described Warren James Husbands, Martez Davidson Hackett and Corrie MaCaulay Brathwaite, as he gave each convicted gunman a starting sentence of 15 years in jail for the “worse firearm possession case we have had to deal with in Barbados”.

“This is a case which reminds me of the Eastern principle of ying and yang,” he said yesterday.

“You are otherwise good men but you have allowed yourselves to fall to corruption and greed, and for it you must pay the penalty,” he told the three.

“You shall not be in prison forever. You will have an opportunity to return to society and do well. You may even be forgiven for this indiscretion but you must pay the penalty.”

Husbands, of Fitts Village, St James; Hackett, a mechanic, of Jackson Tenantry Road, St Michael; and Brathwaite, a customs broker, of Dash Valley, St George, were back in the No. 3 Supreme Court where they were convicted, at a previous Session of the Continuous Sittings, of having 18 firearms in their possession on September 24, 2013.

Types of weapons

The weapons are: four Glock pistols, three Taurus pistols, one Springfield Armoury USA pistol, two Bersas, a SIG Sauer pistol, a Hersal, one Parra Ordnance, a Ruger, a Sturm Ruger, one SIG Arms pistol, one Smith & Wesson revolver and a Smith & Wesson pistol.

The three were also found guilty of having 647 rounds of ammunition in their possession on the same date.

Principal State Counsel Romario Straker and Senior State Counsel Anastacia McMeo-Boyce prosecuted.

Brathwaite and Hackett were represented by King’s Counsel Larry Smith and attorney Meshach Thornhill, while Senior Counsel Angella Mitchell-Gittens appeared for Husbands.

Justice Greaves said the inference that could be drawn was that the 18 guns were destined for distribution.

“This was a colossal betrayal of the citizenry of this county. This was a betrayal of every single resident of this country,” the he declared.

“This constituted a threat. It was a breach of our security and our protection under the law because we, the citizens, have constitutional rights as well.”

The judge noted the prosecution’s case was “extremely strong”. He told the three they had been caught “red-handed with the firearms and the parts spread out on the bed, so many that even a blind man could see”.

He described Brathwaite as “the ringleader in this case” who had breached the trust placed in him.

“He was a customs broker of many years’ standing who had earned the trust of the customs officers to such a degree that they did not even search the packages, which were labelled as tools,” Justice Greaves said.

“On the day of the incident, he personally visited the customs office, dressed up ever so nicely. He was the one, according to the evidence, who arranged for his employee to pick up Mr Husbands at Bussa roundabout. He was the kingpin.”

The judge said Hackett was a voluntary participant in the enterprise, who had “arranged for the apartment and caused them to be lodged there”.

Husbands, he continued, was also a voluntary participant who travelled to the house in Christ Church and who “participated in the assembling and possession of those instruments”.

Justice Greaves said he found no mitigating features in the offence. He dismissed the defence’s suggestions that the recovery of the firearms was a mitigating feature.

“There was no act on the part of the defendants to cause or assist in the recovery of the firearms. In fact, they had made every effort to avoid the recovery of the firearms, using a name to which they cannot be traced, hiding out in a place in Ealing Park.

“And even now, they haven’t confessed. They went to trial and they still maintain their innocence despite being caught red-handed. So, in this case, I cannot consider the recovery a mitigating factor. Grateful for it is this court indeed and the police should be commended for it, but the defendants should not be awarded for that,” he said.

As a result, he said he had determined the starting sentence should be the maximum 15 years allowed under the Firearms Act as it was then.

He also considered their presentencing reports, that they had been deemed as posing a low risk of re-offending and Brathwaite and Hackett’s hitherto clean record.

The judge added he would not consider Husbands’ one conviction and would also treat him as if he had a clean record.

He also said there was an “unreasonable delay” of eight years in the case which had breached their constitutional rights.

Justice Greaves then deducted two years, at three months for every year, from the starting point for delay.

He also deducted 12 months, which included their times on remand, for breach of their constitutional rights.

He then ordered each gunman to spend 12 years in prison for having the firearms and 12 years for the ammunition. Each man’s sentence will run concurrently. (HLE)