Diamonds farmer fined $3,000 for wounding shopkeeper
A farmer of Diamonds has been given until October to pay $3,000 for wounding a shopkeeper.
Aumpa Andrews, a 36-year-old farmer of Diamonds, appeared before the Georgetown Magistrateâs Court yesterday, charged with wounding shopkeeper Garvin âBig Jimâ Butler with a cutlass, cutting him on his left hand.
The court heard that on Friday, May 19, 2017, shortly after 10 p.m., Andrews and another man got into a physical altercation in Butlerâs shop, following which Andrews got hold of a cutlass and attempted to pursue the young man he had been fighting with.
Both the complainant and his witness testified that the shopkeeper came into the public road to caution Andrews by telling him to go home, because it was a fair fight without weapons.
Andrews, however, proceeded to swing his cutlass at Butler, while uttering expletives. The cutlass missed and Butler still attempted to calm the situation, following which Andrews swung the cutlass at Butler a second time, cutting three of his fingers.
When Andrews took the stand, he agreed that Butler had tried to caution him and said it was by pulling the cutlass that Butler got cut, but he wasnât aware until sometime after that Butler said he had chopped him. Andrews also stated he never had anything with the complainant.
After considering the evidence before him, magistrate Rickie Burnett ruled in favour of the complainant.
Andrews has no prior convictions, so he was ordered to pay the complainant $1,500 by October 19 or in default, he will spend 12 months in prison. He is also required to pay the State $1,500, with default of 18 months in prison. In the event of failure to comply, these sentences would run concurrently.(CJ)
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