Man hides bullets, finds hefty fine

A Brandons man has been fined $10,000 for possessing six rounds of ammunition he hid under a rock after stealing it from someone else’s home.

Patrick O’Neal Collymore, 50, of 3rd Avenue Holder’s Land, was ordered to pay the High Court $2,000 immediately. The balance must be settled by December 31.

If he fails to pay the amount imposed by Madam Justice Laurie-Ann Smith-Bovell, he must spend an alternative two years 215 days in prison – the remainder of a six- year starting sentence.

“The starting point for the ammunition is that high because it was acquired while the now convicted man was committing an offence and reflects his conscious decision to commit a crime and acquire illegal ammunition,” the High Court judge said on Monday as she delivered the ruling during the virtual sitting of the court.

Collymore had previously pleaded guilty before the No. 4 Supreme Court to having the ammunition on October 14, 2020.

Among the aggravating factors of the crime, Justice Smith-Bovell said, was the fact that Collymore stole the bullets.

“One must consider why would someone steal bullets, as we know bullets are of no use or pose no threat without a firearm and therefore it is quite likely that there was a firearm lurking somewhere around,” she stated in her ruling adding that there were no mitigating factors to the offence.

What was worse for his case was that he acquired the bullets while carrying out a theft, said the judge. But she added that his cooperation with the police, expression of remorse and guilty plea worked in his favour.

After imposing the fine, the judge imposed the alternative of a six-year starting sentence from which the 272 days that Collymore had already served on remand was deducted. He was also given a one-third discount for his guilty plea which left him with the two years, 215 days to serve in prison if the remaining $8,000 of the fine is not paid by year end.

The convicted man was represented by attorneys Michael Lashley QC and Sade Harris. Principal Crown Counsel Krystal Delaney represented the prosecution.