Man jailed for 'fake gun' robbery

A 24-year-old man who used a fake gun in a robbery at a supermarket has been sentenced to 12 months in jail.

Labourer Ashton "Panday" Ramsoogoon appeared in the Chaguanas Magistrates' Court today before magistrate Wendy Dougdeen-Bally. He pleaded guilty to charges of robbery with violence and having an imitation gun.

He was jointly charged with another man, Andel Winston Marshall, who pleaded not guilty.

Prosecutor Sgt Kashmir Rosan told the court that at about 8.15 pm on August 3, Ramsoogoon and another entered Sammy's Supermarket at Montrose and announced a robbery.

Ramsoogoon pointed the object, at the time believed to be a real gun, at a female worker and took $2,032 from a cash register. Before the men ran out, a man in the supermarket managed to take the weapon.

Chaguanas police were contacted and used the fingerprints from the fake gun as well as CCTV footage to identify Ramsoogoon. WPC Thomas later arrested and charged him and Marshall.

In mitigation, attorney Shiva Boodoo asked the magistrate to consider Ramsoogoon's age, his guilty plea and the fact he had no convictions of a similar nature, in passing her sentence. Ramsoogoon, who lives at Caparo Street in Montrose, Chaguanas, has five convictions for having marijuana.

The magistrate sentenced him to 12 months for each offence. The sentences are to run concurrently.

The magistrate denied bail to Marshall and remanded him into police custody to reappear on September 19.