Chief Magistrate Candia Carette George has acceded to the request of the prosecution led by Inspector Davidson Cadette that Raymond Serguis aged 25 years of Grand Bay be denied bail.
Serguis is charged with trafficking 23,586.8 grams of cannabis, unlawful movement of 27 firearms (27 pistols and 1 revolver), and the unlawful movement of 123 -9mm ammunition and 23- .40 ammunition. After being given the choice of deciding where he wanted to have the matter heard, he elected for a trial at the high court before a judge and jury.
The prosecution asked for bail to be denied
Inspector Cadette told the court that “given the severity of the matter” they are asking the court to deny him bail.
He quoted section 7 (1) (d) under the Bail Act under the title “bail shall be denied” where a defendant is charged with or convicted of an offense of drug trafficking and any offense under the Firearms Act 2011 punishable by a term of imprisonment of five years or more.
This offense Cadette told the court carries a fine of $750,000 and 25 years in jail if found guilty. “Such is the serious nature of the offense, yes he is innocent until proven guilty,” he said.
“However, we are also contending that he is a flight risk given the penalties attached and, the public outcry and outrage on the illegal firearms and the murders attached to it, it is not in the public’s interest to grant him bail,” Inspector Cadette stated.
Zena Moore Dyer responds to the prosecution’s request to deny bail
In response, defense counsel Zena Moore Dyer who is appearing in association with her daughter Gina Dyer Munro for the accused questioned the charge of “unlawful movement of firearms and ammunition. “The complaint is devoid of any particulars, we are saying that the prosecution has not brought any substantial grounds for bail to be refused,” she said.
Dyer told the court that, “even if the offense, is serious, the court must look to see if there are conditions to be given for the bail.”
“No mention of witnesses, the seriousness of the offense is no reason (s) to deny bail. Bail is being granted in this jurisdiction and others for murder, we are talking about the seriousness of the crime, and nothing to show is not balancing the scale of justice,” she remarked.
The decision of the Chief Magistrate
“My attention is focused on the Bail Act and given the severity of the offense, nothing is found where it says that he is entitled to bail…I agree with the prosecution, that given the severity of the offenses and the penalties attached, he is a potential flight risk,” she said.
She also stated that she was obliged to look at the “public’s interest element” of the matter and based on all of the circumstances, bail is “denied.”
The prosecution has also stated that they intend to have the matter dealt with via paper committal for the high court. The court, therefore, set October 31, 2022, for disclosure by the prosecution and adjourned the matter to December 2, 2022, and January 27, 2023.
Under my judgment, he’d be given full sentence of the law!