Guilty goat killer, while in custody, threatens to kill complainants

A 40-year-old man has been imprisoned after he destroyed a 25-year-old man’s ewe goat, and then threatened to kill this man and his father while inside the Questelles Police Station.

Although imprisoned, Orwin Small of Campden Park seemed very calm yesterday after his sentences, even making nonchalant comments outside the Serious Offences Court. He claimed to have killed over 100 animals and that he would continue to kill them.

It did not seem that the same defendant that was asking the “camera man” about his picture, had just been sentenced to spend a stint of five months in prison.

The Chief Magistrate Rechanne Browne did not look kindly on Small’s “wanton disregard for the proprietary rights of others”, which his heartless actions had displayed.

The court heard that on September 13, in Campden Park, at around 7 p.m., a black and white ewe goat valued at EC$500, belonging to Nahshon Neverson of Campden Park, was tied in the yard. A few minutes later, Neverson had cause to look out the window, and the scene that greeted his eyes was that of the defendant using a cutlass to cut the ewe’s throat. The father of Neverson, Hermus Ollivierre, also spoke to the defendant, who did not cease his sawing. Therefore, the goat perished at the hands of this instrument.

Small was taken into police custody and was being held at the Questelles Police Station.

The father and son who owned the ewe goat, visited the station on Saturday, September 14, while Small was detained there, and the defendant told them that he would pay for the goat. Neverson refused, stating that the matter was in the hands of the police, and he would leave them to deal with it.

This made the defendant angry, and he used threatening words to Neverson and his father. This behaviour earned the defendant another two charges, that he, in circumstances likely to cause a breach of the peace, at Questelles Police Station, did make use of threatening language towards Ollivierre, as well as Neverson, namely “When me come out ah jail, I go kill yo and me go tell the magistrate so too”.

Even after he finished pleading to the three charges, the defendant made sure to clarify that his position on all three charges was that he was guilty. There was none of the hesitation that takes hold of many of the accused persons as they face the magistrate.

Small explained that “Ise a farmer planting my ital and ting,” and that his crops were being destroyed by animals. He said that he made reports since June, but it seems as if he didn’t have any rights. He saw his only option as killing animals, “because I feeling my pain, and somebody supposed to feel too.”

However, the element of the events that particularly did not sit well with Senior Prosecutor Adolphus Delplesche, was his threats.

“So how do you explain, at a police station, you are being investigated, while being in custody, you are so bold as to threaten to kill people…” Delplesche opined to the magistrate.

The prosecutor said that he could not understand it, “In the presence of the police your honour,” he reiterated, commenting that it displayed a total disregard and respect for law and order.

Small attempted to interrupt this representation to the magistrate, beckoning “Prosecutor, prosecutor,” but he was quickly chastised as Delplesche told him, “man me nah talk to you, me nah talk to you.” A quick apology followed from the defendant.

After deliberating, the chief magistrate noted that the maximum for the offence is two years imprisonment. Considering the seriousness of the offence, as well as the consequences, Browne decided to begin with a term of four months incarceration.

She considered his wanton disregard for the property of the individuals, evidenced by the fact that even when he was accosted, he still persisted with his actions. Further, he left the owners with a dead goat.

Mitigating features were limited, and included his early guilty plea, for which he received a one third discount.

Therefore, from eight months his sentence was reduced to five months. In addition, compensation of $500 was ordered, to be paid by February 28, 2020.

The gavel also came down forcefully where it concerned the threatening language. Of a maximum of three months, a two-month prison term was handed down on each charge, to run concurrently. The magistrate found it particularly aggravating that the words were uttered in a police station, and that the threat was a serious one.