By PAVEL BAILEY
Tribune Staff Reporter
pbailey@tribunemedia.net
A MAN was sentenced to three years in prison after he led officers on a chase through Pinewood last year where they recovered an assault rifle and 33lbs of marijuana.
Senior Magistrate Carolyn Vogt-Evans gave her ruling at the conclusion of the trial of Orales Jerimeres, 40. He faced charges of possession of a prohibited weapon, possession of ammunition and possession of dangerous drugs with intent to supply.
Alphonso Lewis represented the accused.
Officers reportedly engaged Jerimere in a car chase on Sapodilla Blvd on April 25, 2022, after finding his behaviour suspicious.
While in pursuit, officers testified that they saw him throw an assault rifle out of his car window. After catching the defendant and recovering a Del-Ton Inc 5.56mm calibre assault rifle from the bushes, Jerimere admitted that he had drugs in his house. Upon searching his residence in the Pinewood area, police recovered 33lbs of Indian hemp.
At his arrest, the accused was also found with 14 rounds of .223 ammunition.
Throughout his trial, Jerimere maintained his innocence of the gun offence. He claimed officers on mobile patrol stumbled upon the banned weapon in the bushes while in the same area as he was.
After reviewing the evidence against him, Magistrate Vogt-Evans found Jerimere guilty of all three charges.
During mitigation, Mr Lewis said his client, the single father of a 7-year-old daughter, was employed as a plumber and had a clean record up to this point. For these reasons, he asked the court to be lenient in its sentencing.
However, to deter gun violence, Magistrate Vogt-Evans sentenced Jerimere to three years in prison.
Before being taken into remand, the accused was informed of his right to appeal his sentencing within seven days.
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