A 28-year-old Jamaican national will spend a year and eight months in His Majesty’s Prison after he was convicted for the illegal possession of a firearm and ammunition.
Ricardo McKenzie was charged following an incident on August 19 when police, acting on information received, intercepted a silver Toyota Belta at Green Castle, Bendals.
He was the travelling with another Jamaican national, O’Neil Swaby.
During a search, officers discovered a 9mm automatic pistol with seven rounds of matching ammunition in the chamber.
The firearm, described as a “ghost gun” due to its lack of a serial number, was in plain sight on the back seat.
Additionally, a ski mask was found in a bag on McKenzie’s person.
Both men appeared in court on Wednesday, where McKenzie took full responsibility for the offences.
As a result, charges against Swaby were withdrawn, but he was subsequently deported to Jamaica on Thursday morning.
Magistrate Ngaio Emanuel, noting the circumstances of the discovery – including the loaded firearm in plain sight and the presence of a ski mask – concluded that the two appeared to have been planning to commit a crime.
Consequently, McKenzie received concurrent sentences of one year and eight months for the firearm charge and nine months for the possession of ammunition.
While immigration authorities have filed for McKenzie’s deportation, the court ruled that he must first serve his sentence in Antigua.
