‘Unruly’ ZR driver and car washer on remand until next month

Unruly behaviour in the public transport sector will not be tolerated by the law courts.

Chief Magistrate Ian Weekes sent that stern message on Thursday when he remanded two men, one of them a route taxi driver, to Dodds until January 12, 2022.

Driver Shamon Alan Justin Lowe, 24, of President Kennedy Drive, St Michael and car washer Dario Jamar Cheltenham, 28, of Phillips Road, St Stephens Hill, Black Rock, St Michael, were sent to the St Philip penal institution after pleading guilty to assaulting Ramon Marshall on December 22, 2021.

The court heard from police officer Ralph Rollock that Lowe and Marshall are route taxi drivers who ply the Bridgetown-Redman Village, St Thomas route. They would overtake each other at intervals which eventually resulted in the two blocking each other’s path.

Around 7:40 a.m. on Wednesday, Marshall was sitting in his vehicle at the bus terminal when Lowe opened the door, grabbed his shirt and pulled him out of the vehicle as he uttered the words: “You won’t stop doing c**t around me.”

Cheltenham who was present also cuffed Marshall in his stomach while Lowe armed himself with a cutlass and slapped the complainant on his upper arm.

The matter was reported to the police.

Cheltenham said: “The reason why I cuff the driver in the belly is because he hit me with the van. He pull the van at me in the van stand. I wait till he park the van and cuff he in he belly. He get to the police before me.”

Lowe, meanwhile, explained that he had recently acquired a licence to operate PSVs and for the past three days Marshall had been “doing reckless driving towards me”.

“I ignored him from Sunday. He pulling his van at my van, braking on me and then driving off. I ignored him,” explained Lowe who claimed that he felt threatened.

He said while driving along Thorpes Road, he and Marshall passed each other several times picking up passengers. But Lowe said when Marshall realized his van was full “he started driving recklessly”.

“I genuinely apologise for my actions. I was provoked to do what I did,” Lowe added.

The Chief Magistrate was not impressed.

“Wunna ‘bout here doing foolishness and putting people’s lives in danger. Wunna cannot turn Barbados into the Wild Wild West. You all seem to have no behaviour. The people who raised wunna seem not to have taught you all social skills. This kind of ridiculous behaviour in this sector will not be tolerated,” he declared.

He then queried whether the two accused had lodged a complaint with the police about Marshall before taking their course of action.

The men replied: “No.”

Magistrate Weekes reiterated that “this kind of unruly behaviour will not be tolerated in this place”.

“Too many times we are getting complaints about this kind of behaviour in this sector. You both are remanded pending sentence,” he ruled.

On hearing the magistrate’s decision, Lowe pleaded for leniency and to be given a chance.

But Weekes said: “A message must be sent to those in this sector. Mob rule will not be tolerated. Instead of going to the police . . . you all decided that you all will go for him. Wunna want to take over the streets with this wild bush behaviour. No!”