A man who removed the original number plate on a vehicle and replaced it with an incorrect one was yesterday fined $1 million and sentenced to two years imprisonment after being found guilty in a city court.
Magistrate Judy Latchman handed down the sentence to 36-year-old security guard Leroy Holder at the end of his trial at the Georgetown Magistrates’ Courts.
Magistrate Latchman sternly warned the father of one that number plates can be used by the police as vital clues in solving crime; but stressed that they can only be effective if they are accurate and not an imitation.
Noting that the court would not tolerate dishonesty and the need to send a powerful message of deterrence to potential offenders, the magistrate imposed the $1 million fine on the visibly shocked Holder who was also informed that he will be spending the next 24 months behind bars.
Reviewing the evidence presented, the court held that the original number plate PPP 8438 was deliberately and dishonestly removed and replaced with PNN 5637.
Defence counsel Basil Williams had unsuccessfully begged the court to exercise its discretion in granting a non-custodial sentence and imposing a minimal fine.
After hearing the court’s ruling, Williams indicated to the court his intention to appeal the matter and made a request for his client to be granted bail pending appeal, citing that his client had attended every court hearing during his trial.
However, this request was denied by Magistrate Latchman who advised Williams to make his request at the High Court before Acting Chief Justice Ian Chang instead.
Inspector Joel Ricknauth for the prosecution had also objected to Holder being granted bail citing the likelihood that he would abscond since he had been sentenced.
It is the police’s case that the defendant had been arrested as a suspect in a robbery and after investigations, it was discovered that the vehicle used in the alleged robbery had a fake number plate.
The charge stated that at Camp Street, Georgetown, Holder fraudulently imitated ID mark PNN 5637 on registered car PPP 8438. On July 8, 2013 Holder had denied the charge when it was read to him by Chief Magistrate Priya Sewnarine-Beharry. He was also slapped with charges of having an unlicensed firearm in his possession and robbery.
He was initially remanded to prison but was subsequently granted his pretrial liberty.
On the advice of the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP), the robbery charge was later withdrawn.
Meanwhile, the firearm charge was dismissed last Tuesday after the prosecution failed to prove its case against him.
The court had ruled that the car in which the gun had been found, was at the time occupied by a number of other persons and the prosecution was unable to prove that it did in fact belong to the defendant.
