BASSETERRE, St. Kitts – KERRIM RAWLINS, charged with robbery and receiving, was yesterday (May) found guilty of the latter charge and not guilty of the former at the Basseterre High Court.
According to the evidence presented in court before His Lordship Justice Errol Thomas, the prosecution alleged that on July 31, 2010, Rawlins robbed Allington Berridge of a 8900 BlackBerry Curve (white) valued at EC$1 000 and a gold filled-chain valued at EC$300.
He was also charged with receiving the items.
The prosecutor alleged that the incident occurred sometime in the evening on Seaton Street.
Berridge, the first witness to take the stand, told the court that sometime on that evening while walking across Seaton Street towards College Street Ghaut, he saw a male coming towards him.
He said the male came over and grabbed him, pushed him down on the ground and was trying to relieve him of his chain.
Berridge said he was trying to push the person away but he kept holding on to his chain and at the same time hitting him to various parts of his body.
He said that while attempting to ward off the person, another male joined in the attack and together they beat him and managed to take off his chain.
The young man, who resides in Phillips Village, said he was told to take his hands out of his pocket in which he kept his BlackBerry Curve.
“They asked what else I had and I said nothing, and they kept pushing their hands down in my pockets and took my cell phone,” he said.
Berridge said after the two men had relieved him of his property, they started running towards College Street and he decided to give chase, but one of them turned around and pointed a gun at him, so he discontinued and headed for the Basseterre Police Station where he reported the incident.
He was however unable to identify his robbers and could only describe them as males with dark complexion.
He said that his cellular phone is a white BlackBerry in a blue case and was also able to identify the PIN number.
During cross-examination, the self-represented Rawlins asked Berridge if he looks like the person who had robbed him, to which Berridge replied that he was unable to identify his robbers because the place was dark.
The second witness, Police Officer Jerry Watts, said on the morning of August 20 he and the investigating officer in the matter, Julius Wyatt, went to Frigate Bay where they met the accused at a construction Site.
Watts said that the accused was told he was being arrested on suspicion of a robbery and they took him to the police station.
A search was done at Rawlins’ Upper Monkey Hill residence in his presence and was witnessed by Woman Police Constable Rogers, Wyatt and Watts.
Watts said a number of items were found and taken into custody, including a BlackBerry phone (white) with a blue case fitting the same description that Berridge gave to them.
Rawlins was released by the police and subsequently re-arrested on September 13, 2010, and was told his arrest was in conjunction with continuing inquiries into the July 31 report made against him.
He was then formally arrested and charged with the offences.
During cross-examination, Rawlins asked Watts to repeat what he told them after they had inquired from where he got the cell phone.
The police officer said they were told conflicting stories, as the accused first stated that he had found the phone in the Independence Square and later said someone from The Village had given it to him.
Wyatt, who was the final prosecution witness to testify, identified the search warrant and the cell phone that were presented to the court.
After the prosecution closed its case, Rawlins opted for the witness dock and said he did not rob anyone and that he works hard for what he wants.
He also told the court that on August 6, 2010, he had found a BlackBerry phone in the Independence Square fitting the description of the one taken into evidence.
He said that he checked out the phone and saw that it was in good condition and decided to keep it.
Rawlins said he knew nothing of the robbery and that he was in the process of selling the phone to a co-worker. However, after paying him for the phone, the co-worker had a change of mind and requested a refund.
The Director of Public Prosecution, Paulina Hendrickson, told the accused that the reason why the co-worker changed his mind in purchasing the phone is due to the fact that they realised it could have been tracked by the PIN number.
The jury found Rawlins guilty, and when asked by the foreman where he was on the day of the incident, he said, “At home.”
Kerrim Rawlins was taken from the court to Her Majesty’s Prison and was ordered by Justice Thomas to return on Thursday, May 26, 2011 for sentencing.
