Two 20-year-old men from Chili, Georgetown on Aug. 15 found it difficult to produce a surety after they were granted bail on a theft charge.
On Aug. 8, Jace Baptiste and Yannick Matthias appeared before Magistrate Kaywana Jacobs at the Colonarie Magistrate’s Court sitting at Georgetown.
They were charged that on Aug. 3, at Chilli, they stole eight empty 20-pound Rubis gas cylinders valued at EC$800, the property of Tamara Horne a self-employed of Georgetown.
Baptiste pleaded guilty to the charge and Matthias pleaded not guilty.
The prosecutor, Corporal of Police Delando Charles, did not object to bail but told the court that defendants might interfere with investigations as some of the gas cylinders were not recovered.
The duo were remanded to prison for a week after they told the magistrate they didn’t have anyone to bail them.
At their bail review on Thursday, Jacobs granted both men bail in the sum of EC$1,500 each with one surety.
Baptiste’s sister appeared to bail him but was not accepted as a surety. Then his brother applied to be considered a surety but was also rejected by the court as he was expected to travel soon.
The court was stood down for more than 30 minutes when a third person, a mechanic, appeared to act as surety for the duo and was accepted by the court.
Charles said he was unfamiliar with someone standing surety for more than one accused at the same time.
He, however, said he was familiar with the surety as he had appeared before the court to sign many bail bonds before.
The surety said he was familiar with Baptiste and Matthias and their parents.
The magistrate explained to the surety the implications of standing as a surety.
Charles told the surety, “I hope my friend knows if the court accepts him as surety for the duo and one fails to show, I’m going to ask that he be sent to prison.”
The prosecutor did not object to the mechanic standing as surety for the two defendants.
Speaking to the accused from the box, the surety said sternly, “You have to make sure you turn up or you going to put me in a problem. You understand?”
“Yeah! Yeah!” the duo said.
The magistrate adjourned the matter to Sept. 16 and transferred it to the Georgetown Magistrate’s Court.