Businessman accused of theft granted bail

Christopher Thomas, Gleaner Writer

WESTERN BUREAU:

An Ocho Rios, St Ann-based grocery store operator accused of being involved in the theft and resale of a motor vehicle was offered bail in the Montego Bay Resident Magistrate's Court on Tuesday.

Thirty-seven-year-old David Smith is accused of larceny of a motor vehicle and receiving stolen property. He is being represented by attorney-at-law Ernie Smith.

The court was told that a motor car was stolen on February 22 and sold sometime in March.

The new owner, upon discovering the vehicle had been stolen, informed the police that Smith was the one who had sold him the car, and the businessman was arrested.

In making a bail application, the attorney told Resident Magistrate Sandria Wong-Small that Smith was refuting the allegations against him.

"The accused man denies that he did, in fact, steal any vehicle. If Your Honour is so minded to grant him bail, he can report to the Ocho Rios Police Station," the lawyer said.

"Does he have a passport, Mr Smith?" Wong-Small asked.

"No, Your Honour," Smith promptly replied from the prisoner's dock.

"He has never applied for one," the attorney added.

RM Wong-Small offered the accused man $250,000 bail with surety and ordered him to submit his fingerprints to the police.

"The matter will be mentioned again on July 3. You will report at the Ocho Rios Police Station every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday between 7 a.m. and 6 p.m., and a stop order is to be placed at all ports," the resident magistrate told Smith.

• MoBay vendor sentenced for ganja

WESTERN BUREAU:

A food vendor, who initially claimed that he was not dealing in 12 ounces of ganja, was eventually sentenced to pay $3,000, or spend 30 days in jail.

Dion Gayle of Catherine Hall in Montego Bay pleaded guilty to possession of ganja, but pleaded not guilty to dealing in ganja. However, he later changed his plea to guilty on both counts.

Resident Magistrate Sandria Wong-Small warned him that the matter would be tried if he maintained his plea.

"If you say not guilty, I'm going to try you, and then you're going to have to explain why you had 12 ounces of ganja," Wong-Small advised Gayle.

Gayle told the RM that on May 23, he was at his stall in the Charles Gordon Market when police officers came up to him.

"They were saying I had a gun and they were searching for the gun, and when they found the ganja, they put me in the back of the vehicle," the convicted man recounted.

But the judge, unconvinced, told Gayle that nobody could put anything at his stall without him giving permission for them to do so.

"If you didn't give anybody permission to put the ganja there, you should plead not guilty. But if you know you're responsible for the ganja, take responsibility and go about your business. Don't make me have to be trying these matters," Wong-Small cautioned.