Retired lawman John Mark Annel will be sentenced to a fine for having 100 illegal bullets in his possession six years ago.
So said Justice Pamela Beckles after Annel’s counsel, Angella Mitchell-Gittens, SC, begged the court to consider that a monetary penalty “would not be necessary to do justice to the matter.”
This comes after the retired Senior Superintendent said he was “under the misguided impression that Subsection 3(b) of the Firearms Act provided I could be in possession of the ammunition, once it was for the purpose of target practice.”
Annel, of Kenrick Hutson Drive, Lucas Street, St Philip, was back in the No. 5 Supreme Court yesterday, where he pleaded guilty to having 50 rounds of 9mm-calibre ammunition, as well as 50 rounds of .45mm-calibre ammunition in his possession on September 20, 2017. Annel, who told the court he joined the then called Royal Barbados Police Force in 1980, detailed his rise through the ranks and his responsibilities as the Force’s forensic firearms examiner. He further said that, when he was promoted to the rank of inspector, he was given a licensed firearm. He joined the Barbados Rifle and Pistol Federation and became an “avid shooter.” At one point, he had five licensed firearms until the cost of maintaining them became prohibitive.
“I’ve never tried to be dishonest or look to do any criminal act,” Annel told the court. (HLE)
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