Farmer sentenced to three years in prison for gun, ammo possession

For the next three years, Her Majesty’s Prison will be the place of residence of Iraul Murray.{{more}}

Murray, 33, a farmer of Troumaca, was on Tuesday, at the Serious Offences Court, found guilty of possession of a .38 Smith and Wesson gun and two rounds of ammunition.

Chief Magistrate Rechanne Browne-Matthias sentenced Murray to three years on the gun possession and six months on the ammunition charge.

The sentences will run concurrently.

Murray had also pleaded guilty to 66 grams of cannabis and was ordered to pay $250 forthwith or spend a month in prison.

On March 7, 2014, at about 8 p.m., Murray was in Fitz-Hughes when he was offered a ride by a friend.

Shortly after Murray got into the vehicle, members of the Rapid Response Unit (RRU) were on mobile patrol in the area when they summoned the vehicle to stop.

Police searched a bag that Murray was carrying and found a gun rolled up in a piece of clothing, along with the drug in another compartment of the bag.

In Court, Murray denied ownership of the gun and stated that the bag belonged to his girlfriend and that he went to her friend’s house to collect it.

However, the friend, Anika Bobb, when called to the stand by the prosecution, told the court that Murray never came to her house and that he never collected any bag from her.

In his closing arguments, his attorney Grant Connell told the court that the police had to show Murray had knowledge of what was in the bag.

“You must have foundation to have merit. There are elements of doubt in this case,” he said.(KW)