Two women wept and consoled each other at the Port-of-Spain Eighth Magistrate’s Court yesterday, after one of two ex-soldiers, charged with possession of guns and ammunition, was denied bail and the other granted $750,000 bail.
Former Lance Cpl Devon Edwards was denied bail by Chief Magistrate Marcia Ayers-Caesar, after Deputy Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) Joan Honore-Paul successfully argued that he is likely to commit another crime if granted bail.
Honore-Paul submitted that no amount of conditions attached to his bail could stop Edwards from breaking the law again. She said that there was no objection to former corporal Steve Douglas being granted bail.
In pleading a case for one of her clients, Sophia Chote SC argued that the police diary extract presented by Honore-Paul to bolster her point that Edwards should be denied bail should be disregarded. She said that the extract was inadmissible and uncertified, as it was not stamped and not signed by at least two officers.
She said having a serious pending offence was not a basis to deny an accused bail, unless there was strong evidence to suggest that the accused would abscond or interfere with witnesses.
Chote said Edwards was arrested and charged in January 2014 with attempted murder and gun possession, the matter was later dismissed the following year and he was re-charged in April this year. During that time she said he never absconded or made attempts to interfere with witnesses and there was no evidence that he did either.
Chote asked the Chief Magistrate to impose strict conditions to Edwards’ bail if she was of the view that he was a risk. She argued that the State’s position that there were continuing investigations involving Edwards was “speculative” and also no reason to deny him bail. Chote questioned if the State planned on disclosing whether further charges would be laid against Edwards, but added that even if that was so it was not sufficient to deny him bail.
After listening to the arguments, Ayers-Caesar granted Douglas $750,000 bail and ordered that he surrender his passport and report to the St James Police Station Mondays and Thursdays between 6 am to 6 pm. She denied Edwards bail on the grounds he had a pending matter, the seriousness of the offence and the strength of the evidence based on the police extract. She then adjourned the matter to October 18.
The two ex-soldiers, who were last assigned to the elite Special Forces unit, of the Regiment, face a combined three charges of possession of 26 rounds of assorted ammunition, a silencer and possession of three magazines and two pistols. The offences allegedly took place on October 5 near the Munroe Road Flyover, Uriah Butler Highway, Chaguanas. Douglas faces an individual charge of having seven rounds of ammunition at Palm Hotel, Eastern Main Road, Arouca, on the same day.
Edwards faces four separate charges of having a Glock pistol with three magazines, a Springfield pistol and two charges of having a total of 46 rounds of assorted ammunition at the Uriah Butler Highway, Chaguanas.
Both men were discharged from the Regiment over a year ago.