By Makeida Antonio
A man who pleaded guilty to forgery must pay a $1,000 fine by today or face six months in prison.
The Gray’s Farm resident, who was 22 years old when he defrauded a financial institution through a loan application, was sentenced in the High Court yesterday.
Roheem Williams pleaded guilty on January 18 to forgery in relation to a $4,000 loan he received from Advance Caribbean in August 2020.
Williams, who worked as an orderly at the hospital at the time, provided a job letter, several pay slips, an ID card and proof of address for the loan application.
After the loan was approved, he was provided with a salary deduction form to give to the hospital’s human resources department to be signed. It was subsequently discovered through communication between the fast loan facility and the hospital that the signature and stamp on that form were not authentic.
That was when the matter was referred to the police’s Criminal Investigations Department.
Williams was arrested in October 2020 and charged with receiving, obtaining goods under false pretences, and uttering, but he was granted bail. He immediately pleaded guilty and subsequently repaid the full amount of the loan and the additional interest.
Yesterday, Judge Colin Williams took those facts into consideration during sentencing, and what would have ordinarily been more than a decade in prison was reduced significantly.
The defendant, who was represented by Wendel Robinson, told the court that he would pay the $1,000 fine as soon as possible.