By FARRAH JOHNSON
Tribune Staff Reporter
fjohnson@tribunemedia.net
A 20-year-old man was yesterday fined $25 for selling mangoes, coconut water and coconut jelly on the side of the street without a permit.
Marvin Joseph appeared before Magistrate Kara Turnquest-Deveaux charged with one count of hawking, after he was accused of trying to sell 29 bottles of coconut water, 12 bags of coconut jelly and 45 mangoes on the side of Harrold Road on July 8, without obtaining a permit from the Commissioner of Police.
According to the prosecution, when officers asked Joseph what he was doing on the side of the road, he told them he had some items for sale. When they asked him if he had a permit to sell them, Joseph told them no. He was subsequently arrested and taken to a nearby station. In an interview with police there, he admitted to the offence.
During the hearing yesterday, Joseph pleaded guilty. He also told the magistrate things were hard for him at the moment because he had a little girl at home and had just been evicted from his apartment. He added he was currently living with his aunt and needed the money the officers confiscated from him to help pay his rent.
After listening to his explanation, Magistrate Turnquest-Deveaux fined Joseph $25 or one week at the Bahamas Department of Correctional Services. She told him the money the officers confiscated from him would be returned.
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