Man charged with robbery at sea refused bail

Shaquille Roberts, one of four people jointly charged with five counts of robbery with violence, in connection with the last month’s fatal attack at sea on a group of fishermen, has been denied bail.

Today when the case was called before Couva magistrate Christine Charles, prosecutor Sgt Lincoln Bonnett objected to bail, owing to the seriousness of the alleged offences and the fact that Roberts has five pending matters in the Port of Spain Magistrates' Court.

Roberts’ criminal record showed the charges are gun-related and include having a gun and ammunition to endanger lives. Besson Street police laid the charges in May 2016.

The magistrate remanded the 25-year-old Roberts, of Sea Lots, in police custody and told him of his right to appear before a judge in chambers on the issue of bail if he so wishes.

On July 22, armed pirates in the Gulf of Paria beat the fishermen, threw them overboard and stole four boats, six engines, cellphones and fuel in containers. Seven of the men's bodies later resurfaced, but two friends are still missing.

Roberts is jointly charged with two women – Iyola John, 18, and Mya Bowrin, 19 – as well as murder accused Kareem “Darko” Stanisclaus, 27. Both Roberts and Stanisclaus live at Production Avenue in Sea Lots, Port of Spain.

John and Bowrin, who live at Corinth Settlement in Ste Madeleine and Norman Junction in Gasparillo respectively, are on $100,000 bail each to cover the six charges.

It is alleged that Stanisclaus, together with other people, murdered five of the fishermen. The victims were Anand “Beula” Rampersad, 39, Shiva “Arie” Ramdeo, 27, Hemraj “Alex” Sooknanan, 19, Brandon “Curry” Kissoon,21, and Leslie “Shortman” De Boulet, 61. Kissoon’s cousin,Justin Kissoon, 19, of Mc Bean, Couva, and Jason Baptiste, 26, also called Trevor and Jewel, of Orange Valley, remain unaccounted for.

Cpl Sunil Ramoutar, of the Homicide Bureau Region III laid the charges.

Roberts is also charged with the attempted murders of two men.

The offences are alleged to have taken place in the Gulf of Paria on unknown dates from July 22-30 between Facility River in Chaguanas and Carli Bay.

The four accused are to reappear on August 28.