A woman who concocted a story about being abducted by three masked men and repeatedly raped after she went to spend the weekend with her lover without her foster mother’s knowledge, was dragged before the Corporate Area Resident Magistrate’s Court last week.
Tasha Harrison, 26, of Dumbarton in Kingston, was arrested and charged with creating public mischief on March 25, after she confessed to making up the fictitious tale, after the police detected inconsistencies in her story.
On Friday when she appeared in court, she pleaded guilty before Senior Magistrate Judith Pusey who requested a social enquiry report and remanded her in custody for sentencing on April 17.
The court heard that Harrison told the police that she was in Spanish Town, St Catherine, when three masked men drove up in a car and pulled her in the back seat. Harrison reportedly told the police that the men gagged her mouth, bound her hands and raped her repeatedly while driving around Spanish Town.
Harrison said that the men later left her on Spanish Town Road, following her ordeal.
According to the police, Harrison told them that she made up the story because she did not want her foster mom to put her out of the house, after she went to spend time with her lover.
Women in trouble for obeah
Two women were also placed before the court for reportedly working obeah on their neighbour.
It is alleged that the women sprinkled white rum, chicken blood and white rice in their neighbour’s yard.
One of the accused, Rossetta Noble, was charged with soliciting the practice of obeah, while the other woman, Stephanie Hall-Beckford, was charged with preaching obeah.
However, both women denied the charges.
According to Hall-Beckford, the allegations were a ploy by the complainant to get her imprisoned.
“This lady has been beating my grandchildren and has always been troubling me,” she said. “She tell me say she not going stop ’till me go a prison.”
The complainant, who was present in court, told the court that she has photographs of the items that were sprinkled in her yard.
But RM Pusey told her: “I don’t want to see it today.”
Woman smuggles electrical wire in chicken breast
A woman who was caught attempting to deliver a piece of electrical wire to an inmate at the Gun Court Remand Centre on Camp Road in Kingston in a piece of chicken breast, is scheduled to return to court tomorrow.
Shawnette Harvey was arrested on March 9 at the Gun Court Remand Centre where she had gone to deliver the food to a friend.
Last Thursday she pleaded guilty to breaching the Correctional Act, but explained that she was not aware that the item was in the chicken.
Harvey told the court that a friend, Vivette Duhaney, asked her to take the food to her son, as she was going to a funeral.
“I checked the food before I went in, but after I go in the police officer looked at the food and asked me how the chicken so big – it was the size of my hand,” she said holding up her palm.
Harvey said that she followed the instruction of the policeman and broke up the chicken and they found the wire.
However, she said that after she was charged and released, she confronted Duhaney who told her: “So a wa if you go prison.”
She told the court that Duhaney’s son, Linden Walters, then told her that if she gave the police their address, he was going to kill her and her baby, aged four months.
Following that, Harvey said that she reported the incident, and both individuals were charged. They appeared in court on Thursday, but when the magistrate checked, it was discovered that they were not booked for court. An officer, however, informed the magistrate that they were charged.
As a result, Harvey’s bail was extended for her to return to court tomorrow, along with the two other accused.
According to the arresting officer, the wire is used for charging cellular phones.
Architect in trouble for not delivering blueprint
An architect found himself on the wrong side of the law after he collected $425,000 from a client for a blueprint, but failed to deliver the plan on time.
The court heard that the accused, Andre Amber, collected the payment for the job from last April and was contracted to do the drawing and to submit it to the Kingston & St Andrew Corporation (KSAC), but up to March of this year had not done so.
As a result, he was arrested and charged with failure to deliver goods on a contracted date.
On Friday when he appeared in court, he told RM Pusey that he has since completed the blueprint and has also delivered it to the KSAC.
Amber then presented a receipt to prove that he had delivered the drawing to the KSAC, but when the magistrate checked, the date of delivery was Friday, March 28.
“This morning you deliver it. Him think him smart,” the magistrate remarked. “Cute.”
She then rescheduled the matter for April 5 and instructed the liaison officer to find out if the blueprint was in fact delivered to the KSAC.
Amber’s bail was then extended.
Security guard robs office while on watch
A security guard who broke into an office that he was guarding and stole two cheques, which he forged and encashed for $108,000, was remanded in custody for sentencing on April 11.
Andre Orgill, 20, was employed as a security guard at Market Me Consultants on West King’s House Road in St Andrew.
However, the court heard that on March 6, Orgill used a duplicated key to gain access to the office and stole a number of blank Market Me cheques. The court further heard that Orgill forged two of the cheques and was successful in encashing them, all of which amounted to $108, 000.
The theft was later discovered and following investigation he was arrested and charged.
On Thursday when he appeared in court, he pleaded guilty to forgery, uttering forged documents, obtaining money by false pretence and housebreaking and larceny, but was remanded by RM Pusey after his lawyer requested a social enquiry report before sentencing.