Rasta man caught outside during curfew

The “level of foolishness” occurring during the COVID-19 curfew imposed to stem the spread of the coronavirus has left this island’s Chief Magistrate Ian Weekes baffled.

The reaction came today as he dealt with several breach of curfew charges in the District ‘D’ Magistrates’ Court and particularly the case against Daniel Mario Tull, of Lot 36 Kensington Lodge, Passage Road, St Michael.

The 50-year-old had pleaded guilty to remaining outdoors at 11:30 p.m. on May 10 without a reasonable explanation when a national directive had been imposed that persons remain indoors.

Tull told the judicial officer that he had visited his father when he became “really hungry”. He said with nothing in the house for him to eat he went out to purchase a power drink. “My father does not eat the stuff I does eat. I is a rasta man,” he explained.

But under questioning he admitted that before he visited his father he should have ensured he had what was needed for his diet.

“What going on with y’all Bajans that freaking me out is this, everybody got a reason for doing this. But if you are going out and ran into someone who is infected and did not know . . . two fellas shout you, then you going back home shout a girlfriend of yours and she does not know you infected and y’all don’t seem to understand this. There is a level of foolishness that I just don’t get.

“The people tell wunna stay inside, stay in! We trying to get the place level out but wunna ain’t listening,” Weekes stressed.

For not having a reasonable explanation for breaching the curfew Tull must now pay the court a $3,500 fine. He has 16 weeks in which to do so or he will spend six months in prison.

However, Tull’s legal troubles are not over. He has to reappear before the Chief Magistrate on July 20 on charges of possession, possession with intent to supply and having trafficable quantity of cannabis as well as having a knife along Clarke’s Road without reasonable authority.

He was granted $3,500 bail.