Omari Roberts granted $100K bail on firearm & ammo charges
The Royal Virgin Islands Police Force (RVIPF) had said police seized two assault rifles, and a significant amount of assorted ammunition during an operation on Friday, October 6, 2023.
Mr Roberts was subsequently charged with Keeping a Prohibited Firearm without a Licence and three counts of Unlawful Possession of Explosives.
Crown objects to bail
Senior Crown Counsel Khadija Beddeau had initially objected to bail but after Magistrate Husbands stated he was considering bail she suggested $1M; however, bail was set at $100,000.00, on the suggestion of Roberts lawyer Stephen R. Daniels.
Ms Beddeau said the Crown was objecting to bail since Mr Roberts had at least 2 prior convictions, including Possession of Explosives, and was fined $500.00 on May 25, 2022.
She also said Mr Roberts has a “propensity to commit offenses while on bail”. She detailed that Mr Roberts is out on bail for a matter of Assault Occasioning Actual Bodily Harm.
Ms Beddeau also said the defendant was likely to interfere with the course of the investigations.
Roberts’ lawyer Mr Daniels said his client, who is into “trucking” and has 3 minor children, was unlawfully arrested and charged.
Roberts ‘unlawfully arrested’- Stephen R. Daniels
He said on October 6, 2023, police executed a warrant to search Roberts’ apartment but they came up empty-handed.
Daniels also said his client was placed in handcuffs and after he was made to wait for police to obtain a warrant to search another apartment not belonging to his client he was forced to witness the search of someone else’s apartment.
It was in the apartment belonging to someone else that the firearms and ammunition were allegedly found; however, only Roberts was charged, Stephens detailed.
$1M bail proposed by Crown
Meanwhile, Ms Beddeau said she was instructed to recommend a surety of $1M if bail is to be considered.
Magistrate Husbands then asked Ms Beddeau if she was serious about the $1M proposed surety for bail. She replied, "My Lord, I am a creature of instruction and those are my instructions but I hear the court…”
Other conditions for bail for Mr Roberts include surrendering his passport, not applying for any new travel documents, and reporting to the Road Town Police Station three times a week.
53 Responses to “Omari Roberts granted $100K bail on firearm & ammo charges”
@Hey it's Mr. T don't you see them chains is their signature mark? That is how you can recognize them dr**** d****s!
Those of you who don’t follow the crowd have sense to know when you follow fashion you look silly.
As the DPP never fails to remind everybody, she is responsible to nobody. The instructions to ask for $1m came from the DPP, but she did not turn up T court and instead let one of her junior lawyers take the flick for a very silly suggestion about bail.
Good for Ms Beaddeau to make it clear that she was only doing what the DPP instructed her to do.
We really need a proper DPP!
We have come to crossroad here in this Territory where we don’t know who to trust, we don’t really know many of the smiling faces among us and it is scary! I dare say it sends chills up my spine to see where the BVI is heading! We need to pray! We have so many prisoners up at His Majesty’s Prison. Many of them have been there for about five years and up to now cannot get a trial. What is going on in this place? We see the well-educated and capable lawyers leaving the DPP’s office by the twos and threes. What is going on??? And there is silence! No one is addressing the state of affairs in the DPP’s office! No one! When a lawyer is assigned to a case and then leaves resigns suddenly, or put in their required notice while working on a case, something is wrong!!! And then you have the ripple effects of another lawyer coming onboard to take up the case or cases. This process takes time! It’s like starting all over again!
I understand that there is a serious issue of bullying in the DPP’s Office that is causing this Exodus! And when this happens the prisoners suffer. Everyone is innocent until proven guilty, and everyone has a right for the cases to be heard in a timely manner.
Governor, I understand that you are responsible for the DPP’s Office. Sir, I am pleading with you to remove the current DPP as soon as possible because I have a bad feeling that if we continue to have prisoners on remand for so long without they having a fair trial, a riot will break out at that prison and there will be no way to fix it!
He as the same chain as my nabour dog
Sale drug,buy truck.
If thdy catch you,pay with drug money
Here now, a repeated offender, gun and ammunition charge ,ties to the upper Caribbean Islands (Vincentian) his photo a typical "hide your identity behind sunglasses".
His case is different and if you read the damn article properly you would understand that they searched his place and found nothing illegal. He was forced to witness a search at a house that doesn't belong to him they found guns there an arrested him for those guns make it make sense. If he is not connected to that home in any type of way you make it make sense for me why he was charged.
The Director of public prosecution can only move ahead in the court system based on what the police handover …….