Gun offender ordered to pay $25 000 in fines

A 25-year-old man has been ordered to pay a total of $25 000 in fines to avoid serving prison time for firearm and ammunition offences.

Antonio Leacock, of Friendship Terrace, St Michael, was on Friday sentenced by Justice Carlisle Greaves, who ordered him to pay $15 000 immediately or face three years in prison for possession of a .04 pistol without a valid licence on September 21, 2022.

Leacock, who had pleaded guilty at his first appearance in the No. 3 Supreme Court in January last year, paid that fine on the spot.

He was also fined $10 000 for illegal possession of 37 rounds of ammunition. That sum must be paid within three months, or Leacock will serve an additional three-year sentence.

Justice Greaves gave a stern warning: “I don’t do extensions. If you don’t pay the fine within the time ordered, I will send you to jail.”

Earlier, when asked if he had anything to say before the sentence was handed down, Leacock expressed remorse, pleaded for a chance to lead a better life and apologised to his relatives—several of whom were present—for the situation he placed them in.

According to the facts presented, the gun and ammunition were discovered in Leacock’s bedroom during a search warrant execution. Justice Greaves recounted Leacock’s explanation: he said he kept the weapon out of fear for his family’s safety. His brother had previously been shot by a known individual—someone who was later convicted of murder but released—and who had allegedly shot at Leacock’s mother and “was then driving around in his car, laughing at him, boasting that jail can’t hold him, [that] he has backup.”   

The judge accepted the shared sentencing recommendation from Principal State Counsel Neville Watson and defence attorney Ken Mason to impose a fine instead of a custodial sentence. He explained that while the offence previously carried a maximum of 15 years’ imprisonment, recent legislative reforms now allow judges to use an eight-year starting point and offer discretion to impose fines in certain cases.

Justice Greaves noted that in recent years, fines have been applied to firearm and ammunition offenders, particularly those of previously good character who enter early guilty pleas. He confirmed that Leacock fell within that category, adding that a pre-sentencing report indicated he was not at high risk of reoffending.