Teen sentenced to three years in prison for gun, ammo possession

Over the next three years, 17-year-old Rockies resident Tevin Williams will have the opportunity to either reflect on his mistakes or hone his skills as a criminal.

The baby-faced teen appeared before magistrate Carla James at the Kingstown Magistrate’s Court on Monday and pleaded guilty to possession of a .38 revolver and three rounds of .38 ammunition.

He was sentenced to three years in prison on the gun charge and six months for the ammunition. The charges will run concurrently.

The facts stated in court are that on July 5, 2015, Station Sergeant Hezron Ballantyne and police constable 240 James were walking in the vicinity of Randy’s Supermarket when they saw Williams.

The officers observed that Williams was acting in a suspicious manner, approached him and requested a search, to which he consented.

During the search, the loaded gun was discovered in the right side of the waist of his pants.

When questioned about the gun, Williams said, “(mentions name) gimme to hold.”

The young man was then taken to the Criminal Investigations Department (CID) where he was arrested and charged.

Senior Prosecutor in the office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) Adolphus Delpeche told the court that he had prior discussions with Williams about the serious nature of the offence and his actions as a young man.

While recommending a two-and-a-half to three-year sentence in the circumstances, Delpeche said Williams is a child that can be reformed.

“He is not beyond reformation. This will give him an opportunity to pull his socks up and do better,” the prosecutor stated.

Just before imposing sentence, magistrate James said in the short time she has been sitting as a magistrate, Williams has appeared before her on two separate occasions on charges of theft.

“I am disappointed to see you here again! I hope this will be a deterrent for you,” she added.(AS)