And while the Supreme Court case is good news for the Mena group, on the ground floor which houses the Magistrate Court, the rooms continued to process a regular share of gun and ammunition charges. A Belize City barber was convicted this evening of Kept Prohibited Material, Kept Unlicensed Firearm and Kept Unlicensed Ammunition. Elvis Bevans was busted on May twenty-second, 2011 with an extended clip for a nine millimeter pistol as well as nine rounds of ammunition at the corner of Neal’s Penn Road and Kraal Road in Belize City. But while Bevans was convicted, Chief Magistrate Ann Marie Smith noted when the trial concluded that it was clear that he had been set up by his friend, thirty year old Jermaine Garnett. Garnett had made a deal with police that he would hand in the weapon to avoid charges when he was caught with drugs. Bevans was asked to transport the gun and ammo to Garnett, but soon after he picked them up, he was intercepted by police. The Chief Magistrate explained to Bevans that while it may have been a case of entrapment, he was caught with the firearm and the prosecution proved their case. She also pointed out that the deal was between Garnett and the police and, therefore, should not have involved him. With that, he was sentenced to five years in prison for each charge, but the terms are to run concurrently.
