The Tribune

By NICO SCAVELLA

Tribune Staff Reporter

nscavella@tribunemedia.net

A ROYAL Bahamas Defence Force officer was given ten working days by a magistrate yesterday to resolve allegations he took thousands of dollars from two individuals to import vehicles and/or car parts on their behalf without honouring his obligations.

Magistrate Derence Rolle Davis told Tavares Styles, of Gilbert Close off Marshall Road, that he has until April 30 to settle things with Jamaal Deal and Glenford Bevan concerning the $5,355 and $2,200 they respectively paid him to import the various items on two separate occasions in March and September of last year.

Prior to the court order, Styles had pleaded guilty to two counts of stealing by reason of service.

It was first alleged that on March 20, 2017, at New Providence, he stole $2,200 from Mr Bevan, which he had custody of by reason of his service.

It was also alleged that between September 12 and 30, 2017, he stole $5,355 in cash from Mr Deal, which he also had custody of by reason of his service.

According to a summary of the facts read by the prosecution, sometime in March 2017, Mr Bevan was seeking to purchase truck parts, and was eventually approached by a man he knew as Styles who said he imported car parts.

The prosecutor said on March 20, 2017, Mr Bevan gave Styles $2,200 for the purchase of two Ford F-150 doors and his service while at his residence. Mr Bevan in turn received a receipt for his proof of purchase. Styles told him at the time the doors would be in Nassau within two weeks of the initial transaction.

However, months passed, and Mr Bevan never got the truck doors. He made multiple attempts to contact Styles on the issue, which yielded no results.

Concerning Mr Deal, the prosecutor said sometime between September 12 and 30, 2017, he paid Styles $5,355 in cash to purchase a 2009 Chevy Silverado from the United States. However, Styles never bought the car, nor did he compensate Mr Deal.

Styles pleaded guilty to both charges, but maintained he did not take the funds outright.

He claimed he was merely the “middle man” for both transactions. Concerning Mr Bevan, Styles said he ordered the doors, but somehow during the shipping process they went missing.

Concerning Mr Deal, Styles said he purchased the truck through his cousin, and has receipts for the purchase, but somehow things went awry. Styles said he currently has a truck, and that Mr Bevan is willing to accept that as compensation, but that he just has to get the paperwork from a certain lawyer.

Styles ultimately asked Magistrate Rolle Davis not to sentence him for the crimes and cause him to lose his job, but rather to give him some time to resolve the matters.

Magistrate Rolle Davis ultimately deferred both sentences, and adjourned the case to April 13. However, the magistrate said Styles would not be released from custody.

Styles indicated to the court that if incarcerated, he would not be able to resolve the issues as best as he could, and that he would not want to leave it up to someone else to do so.

However, the magistrate responded by saying that as Styles had over a year in one instance and seven months in the other to resolve the respective matters, he’d “better make some calls” while in custody.