Garnet Grant, the St Catherine man who was held with an illegal gun on Independence Day, was sentenced to nine months' hard labour when he appeared in the Corporate Area Resident Magistrate's Court recently.

Grant, a 36-year-old plumber from St Johns Road in Spanish Town, St Catherine, was told that he would have to served nine months for the gun and six months for the ammunition. Resident Magistrate Simone Maddix told him that the sentences are to run concurrently, therefore, he will only spend nine months in prison.

Corporal Henry Parkins, of the Old Harbour Bay Police Station, outlined to the court that on August 2, about 12:15 a.m., police personnel were on patrol along George Lee Boulevard in St Catherine.

Corporal Parkins said the police signalled a Toyota Corrolla to stop. He said Grant came out of the vehicle and a pistol fell from his possession. It was revealed that when it was retrieved, it was found to be a Larsen 9mm semiautomatic pistol with a magazine containing one live round.

Three other persons, who were also in the vehicle, were charged with illegal possession of firearm and ammunition, but during the court appearances Grant declared that the gun belonged to him, hence the others were released.

He told the court that the others had no knowledge of the gun.