By PAVEL BAILEY
Tribune Court Reporter
pbailey@tribunemedia.net
A MAN was granted $6,000 bail in Magistrate’s Court yesterday after attempting to sell a stolen car.
Mervin Johnson, 21, appeared before Magistrate Kendra Kelly on charges of fraud by false pretences and receiving.
Sometime between May 21-22 Johnson is accused of coming into possession of Katherine Edgecombe’s stolen $6,000 2012 Nissan March. The vehicle was reportedly stolen by two unidentified gunmen on Saunders beach at 10:30pm on May 21.
Johnson is further alleged to have fraudulently obtained $2,500 from Mark Bullard by selling the car to him in the area of Yamacraw Road on May 26.
Bullard eventually discovered the vehicle was stolen and it was recovered by police.
In court, the defendant pleaded guilty to all charges.
He explained to the court that a man called Amell Clarke had sold him the car and stated he didn’t know the vehicle was stolen as he had received papers matching the vehicle.
Johnson further said it was this same man who advised him to sell the vehicle in order to pay off the defendant’s prison debts.
The magistrate entered a not guilty plea for the receiving and fraud charges.
Despite this, the defendant still offered to personally financially compensate the complainant for the car, as Clarke had allegedly run off with the money Bullard had purchased the car with.
While Johnson is already on Supreme Court bail and fitted with an ankle monitor for the alleged rape of a 22-year-old woman he met on Facebook last November, there was no objection to bail in this matter.
Bail was granted at $6,000 for both charges with one or two sureties, under the condition Johnson sign in at South Beach Police Station every Wednesday by 6pm.
The accused’s trial is set for July 13.
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