Accused pleads not guilty to burglary but case won’t be dropped

A request by an accused man to have his 14-year-old aggravated burglary case dismissed was rejected when he appeared before Justice Randall Worrell.

Mark Austin was seeking to have the charge dropped when he reappeared in the No.2 Supreme Court.

Austin, along with co-accused John Haynes and Roger Carter, are charged with a 2007 case of aggravated burglary.

While Carter has pleaded guilty, both Austin and Haynes have pleaded not guilty.

Austin told Justice Worrell he was tired of continually coming to court only to hear that the matter was being adjourned.

He said: “What I want to say is that I came home on January 20, when you gave me this bail and I went and help myself and find a job. I’d been working in construction, I’m working down in Gibbs, St Peter, building a house on the beach. I would like this case done because every time I come to court the prosecutor saying that them waiting on somebody when you come again somebody holding for this body.

“This case is from all back in 2007 and I would like the case to start or the case get dismissed. This case was going on long enough. I can’t afford to keep coming here and I got to go work. It’s either let we get the case start or let we dismiss the case please.”

Justice Worrell told him that the case would have started if not for the COVID-19 pandemic.

He said the pandemic had restricted jury trials which meant his matter could not be started.

“But remember that right now there is COVID and we’re not doing any trials,” Justice Worrell told him.

Justice Worrell advised him to use the virtual platform as opposed to coming down to the court so that he would not have to miss work.

Austin is represented by attorney-at-law Safiya Moore.

Carter, the lone accused to plead guilty, is represented by attorney-at-law Rashida Edwards.

He is awaiting a pre-sentencing report.

But an arrest warrant was issued from the bench for Haynes who was absent from court again.

Justice Worrell adjourned the case until February 25, 2022.