THE THREE policemen from the Montego Freeport Port police station who have appealed against their robbery with aggravation convictions and prison sentences will know their fate on March 3.
They are Corporal Waldron Francis and Constables Kirk Palmer and Curtis Hylton who were each sentenced on March 15 last year to eight months imprisonment at hard labour.
The Court of Appeal extended their bail for them to return to the Court of Appeal to hear the outcome of their appeal. They are each on bail in the sum of $1.5 million with sureties.
Resident Magistrate Paulette Williams had convicted them of robbing Robert Noads, a musician and farmer, of J$150,000 and US$10,000 on December 5, 2000.
Attorneys-at-law Clive Mullings and Roy Fairclough argued on appeal that the policemen should be freed because the Crown did not prove the charge against them. The lawyers argued that the verdict was unreasonable.
Paula Llewllyn, Acting Senior Deputy Director of Public Prosecutions argued that the court should not disturb the RM's verdict. Miss Llewellyn said that the other policemen aided and abetted Palmer in carrying out the offence. She said the policemen were all part of a common design to rob Noad.
The evidence presented at the trial was that on December 5, 2000, Francis, a 21-year veteran of the police force, 30-year-old Palmer and 24-year-old Hylton, stole money amounting to $600,000 from the complainant Robert Noads and a Colombian friend.
According to evidence given in Montego Bay Resident Magistrate's Court, the three policemen started following Noad's car from the Blue Diamond Shopping Centre in Ironshore. When they reached the Montego Bay Freeport area, the three ordered Noads to stop, shouting that they were policemen from Narcotics.
Noad's car was searched and the police found US$10,000 and J$200,000. The policemen took the money and returned only $50,000 after Noad begged them to return it. Noads said he had to chant the "23rd Psalm" when he saw how the policemen, particularly Palmer, were behaving.
Noads then made a report at the Montego Bay Police Station and pointed out Hylton as one of the policemen. Superintendent Leon Rose, Commanding Officer for the parish of St. James, was called and Hylton was questioned. He led his superiors to his barracks room in the station where he handed over US$1,400 and J$48,000 from his locker.
In their defence, the policemen denied robbing Noad. Hylton said the money he handed over to the police was his personal money which he got from a partner draw.
The Court of Appeal comprising Mr. Justice Henderson Downer, Mr. Justice Seymour Panton and Mr. Justice Algernon Smith heard the appeal.
