Antigua.news Antigua and Barbuda Man Claims Gun Amnesty Defense, Gets 18 Months Behind Bars
Antigua.news Antigua and Barbuda Man Claims Gun Amnesty Defense, Gets 18 Months Behind Bars

Man Claims Gun Amnesty Defense, Gets 18 Months Behind Bars

15 April 2025 - 14:07

Man Claims Gun Amnesty Defense, Gets 18 Months Behind Bars

15 April 2025 - 14:07

court gavel with a gun on the table

A chance encounter with police on patrol has landed 50-year-old Ed Archibald in prison despite his claims that he was en route to surrender his firearm under a national amnesty program.

The Old Runaway resident received an 18-month sentence Tuesday after pleading guilty to possession of an unlicensed firearm and ammunition.

The conviction stems from his arrest on Saturday evening when officers patrolling Thames Street discovered a black Ruger .380 auto pistol and six matching rounds in his possession.

Defence attorney Leon Symister presented his client’s case that the weapon was being transported to a police station for voluntary surrender as part of the country’s ongoing gun amnesty initiative.

Magistrate Ngaio Emanuel applied standard sentencing guidelines, resulting in concurrent sentences of 18 months for the illegal firearm and 6 months for ammunition possession.

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9 Comments

  1. noted, during an amnesty do not carry a firearm to surrender it at police HQ.
    nice. imma just call the cops. tell them someone left a gun in my yard and ill wait for them to come for it. i still want my money though.
    but they may want to search my house. hmmmm. of then. get rid of the drugs and clean the house, first.
    GOT IT.

    Reply
  2. And they wonder why they don’t have the citizens corporations with anything…Give the man some community service hours or something jak….

    Reply
    • Exactly, and to go up at that stinking place for this . Really?

      Reply
  3. Do they think? How will this make other men feel. I’m sure they are going to not wanna bring in the gun now!

    Reply
  4. Sooo, we just jailed a 50 year old? I mean he did say he was on his way to take the gun in.

    Reply
    • Confused confused. So that’s what is going to happen if you are caught with a firearm by police while on your way to turn it in.

      Reply
  5. I like the initiative of the gun amnesty but I don’t trust the SOPs both for how law enforcement officers carry this out on the receiving side and for someone who want to take part in this to surrender their illegal arms and ammunition.

    The best advice I can give is to seek a lawyer and pay him to do a station visit explaining your intentions and it’s to take part in this gun amnesty. So when y’all reach the station the lawyer go in first with the arms and ammunition and there he’ll do all the talking and then he can let the officers know he’s there to represent you.

    If the lawyer goes in with the arms then maybe the police won’t feel threatened .

    All in all I don’t think it’s a good idea to just walk up to a police station and say I have arms and ammunition to surrender. Without legal representation gun amnesty scheme that should work with you may just end up working against you.

    Reply
  6. Ah hah. All I can do is laugh cause that’s the same thing u said he would say.. My boy good one. You tried

    Reply
  7. This situation begs the question….Does the police really want citizens to surrender their arms? If not – why? Seems to me that this was a deliberate attempt to scare people into NOT participating in the amnesty program.

    Reply

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