By PAVEL BAILEY
Tribune Court Reporter
pbailey@tribunemedia.net
A MAN was sentenced to 18 months in prison Wednesday for possession of an unlicensed firearm.
Dominique Rolle, 26, and two other men stood before Magistrate Samuel McKinney for decision on their firearm and ammunition trial.
On December 21, 2020 when stopped by officers on mobile patrol on Balfour Avenue the trio were found in possession of a black Glock 43 pistol with the serial number erased. At the same time eight unfired rounds of .9mm ammunition were also found.
In his summary of their case Magistrate McKinney stated that officers recovered the firearm from a hidden compartment near the rear-view mirror of the vehicle, of which Rolle was the driver.
In prior testimony it was stated that the two other men were only passengers at the time who both denied ownership of the vehicle during questioning.
During Rolle’s official police interview he gave a no comment response to the question of the vehicle’s ownership. He later claimed that he had only come into possession of the vehicle a week before his arrest, saying that he only got it from an unnamed man in Fox Hill.
After restating these points, the magistrate said that he did not accept Rolle’s explanation of events and ruled that he was the owner of the firearm and ammunition. While the remaining defendants were discharged for the matter, Rolle was found guilty on both counts.
The court heard that Rolle has a previous conviction for stealing and a pending murder charge.
As part of his plea of mitigation, his attorney Ian Cargill stated that his client is a father of two and gainfully employed as a mechanic. In view of this he asked that the court be lenient in its sentencing.
Given the fact that Rolle has no convictions of a similar nature the magistrate sentenced him to 18 months for the gun and one year for the ammunition. These sentences are to be served concurrently at the Bahamas Department of Correctional Services.
Rolle faced a $7,500 fine for the gun; in default he risks an additional six months in custody.
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