Teen who breached protection order denied bail

A teenager was on Tuesday refused bail when he appeared in the San Fernando Magistrates’ Court charged with breaching a protection order made against him by his 70-year-old grandfather.

Mark Mohammed, 19, stood before senior magistrate Cheryl-Ann Antoine with one charge stating that on January 21, he breached a protection order made by Nazir Mohammed. A second charge alleged that the teen assaulted Mohammed by threatening to shoot him. The teenager pleaded not guilty to the charges laid by PC John of San Fernando Police Station.

The teenager was unrepresented by counsel on Tuesday. Nazir, who was present in court, told the magistrate his grandson has been giving trouble for sometime. Nazir said Mohammed dropped out of school in Form 4. In 2014, the court heard, the teenager was convicted for possession of marijuana. “He came into my house and say he will shoot me. He broke my pump and threw away a sack of flour,” Mohammed told the magistrate. Antoine told the teenager he should show respect towards his grandfather.

“This is your granddad. He is 70-years-old and should not be here,”Antoine said. As the magistrate spoke, Mohammed was seen laughing. “There is nothing funny about this. There is a lot of misplaced humour in this society,” Magistrate Antoine said. She asked Nazir if there were any other relatives willing to care for Mohammed.

Nazir said the teenager had also threatened other members of the family. “According to your granddad you are making life very difficult for everyone in that household,” Magistrate Antoine said. Mohammed was remanded into police custody and as he was led outside, the teen was seen crying. The case was adjourned to tomorrow.