Men accused of Grenada robbery no longer facing extradition

While two residents of Carriere are no longer facing extradition to Grenada on suspicion of robbing a Credit Union there, they must now deal with the consequences of having been arrested and then jailed for several days.

CCTV images of the two suspects from October 11, 2019 armed robbery at the GUT Credit Union in Carriacou, Grenada.

The proceedings against the men were withdrawn by the prosecution last Friday, February 21. But for Hyah Browne, and Anlee Parsons, the experience, which saw them spending over 10 days in jail between October and November 2019, has lasting effects.

The two men, who were represented by defense attorney Grant Connell, lingered temporarily outside of the building of the Serious Offences Court last Friday after their legal burdens had been cleared.

The mother of Parsons indicated that the whole experience has been “Very stressful. Sleepless nights, no eating, whole family was in distress.”

“I’ve never suffered with high blood pressure before but within a few months I have high blood pressure,” she disclosed.

“These two young innocent man have to go through all this kinda stress,” the mother lamented, adding “and God has delivered them and I am happy.”

Her son has never travelled, the mother indicated.

Further, she said that it was “not nice” what “they” did to her son, picking him up and finding out that he was working at the time of the robbery in Grenada, but still putting him in prison for the amount of time that they did.

Her son was employed with a contractor on a construction project at the time, and Browne was a labourer employed with the Central Water and Sewage Authority(CWSA).

Parsons is not working right now, because work on the road construction site in Calder that he was working on has halted.

Browne claimed that he had been let go from his job. “I used to work with Water Authority as a labourer and right now me ain’t working with them again,” he revealed, explaining that one cannot miss more than three days work and because of the case, he had to stop.

Grant Connell, lawyer for the two accused

SEARCHLIGHT has confirmed that Browne has not worked with the company since 2019, but the reason is not known. Browne also said that on the day of the robbery he was at work. “The boss who been over we, the engineer, get record for everything we say,” the Carriere resident noted, adding even this was not sufficient to prove that he was not involved.

From the moment he was picked up by the authorities in relation to the robbery in Grenada, Browne said it felt as if his whole world had come crashing down for no reason, because he did not know anything about what they were speaking about.

The subdued man said the experience changed his life and put something in his head which he cannot now remove. He said he would never feel “normal” again.

He continued, “…Cah me go in jail, in a sense, for nuttin and if Grant Connell, the lawyer, nah been step in, I would still dey round there for no reason. Me cah understand why all that happen and nobody nah say nuttin you know?”

When asked if he had ever been to Grenada, he commented “Never ever,” and that he had never travelled before.

Browne and Parsons had been remanded at the end of October, to November 12, 2019. awaiting extradition proceedings, following the issuing of warrants for their arrest for the October 11 robbery of the Grenada Union of Teachers Credit Union (GUTCU) in Carriacou. This robbery involved $26,205.60 being stolen from the institution on the said date, by two men, one armed with a gun.

Bail was granted to the men on November 12, after an affidavit was submitted to the court. Before granting them $3000 bail, Chief Magistrate Rechanne Browne had noted that there were “interesting” issues highlighted in the affidavit at the time.

It is said that there was CCTV footage of the assailants responsible for the robbery, but the defense maintained that those people captured were not Browne and Parsons.

It was also said at the time that there was evidence that the two men were working on the day of the incident.