The 36-year-old bar owner charged with assaulting a woman in a bar in Arima, after a video of the incident went viral on social media last week, remains behind bars in prison because he could not process his bail. Ricardo Jerome, of Oropune Gardens, Piarco, was granted $60,000 bail when he appeared in the Arima Magistrate’s Court on Monday.
However, he was not able to process the bail that evening as the court’s administrative department was already closed. The T&T Guardian understands that Jerome’s relatives returned to the court yesterday to secure his bail but were told that the Clerk of the Peace, who is required to approve it, did not show up for work. They are expected to make another attempt today.
Meanwhile, Jerome’s lawyer, Fareed Ali, yesterday wrote to Prisons Commissioner Sterling Stewart requesting that his client be separated from the general prison population for his own safety.
“This may be necessary given the nature of the offences. There is a real possibility that the general prison population may be revengeful,” Ali said in his letter to Stewart. Ali did not receive a response up to late yesterday. He was also critical of the absence of the Clerk of the Peace at the Arima Court, which he claimed affected his client’s ability to secure bail, as well as several other prisoners who appeared in court this week.
“This serves as an unwarranted hiccup frustrating Jerome’s desire to access bail,” Ali said. Jerome, who is also employed as a labourer with the Customs and Excise Division, surrendered to police last Friday after a video clip of the assault, which took place the day before, was posted on social media sites.
The video, captured by CCTV cameras at Nella’s Sports Bar, Arima Old Road, Arima, forms part of the State’s case against Jerome. The victim, Ornella Ruth Marchan, who shares a relationship with Jerome, has refused to give police investigators a statement.
Jerome, who is charged with disorderly conduct, assault by beating and possession of a weapon, has pleaded not guilty to the offences.
As part of the conditions of his bail Jerome has been ordered to refrain from contacting the victim, with whom he has a nine-year-old son. The woman resides at the home of Jerome’s mother in La Horquetta. He is scheduled to reappear in court tomorrow.