Vicardo “Scar” Farrell was given seven years in prison for firearm and ammunition offences on Friday — and he still faces a separate murder charge before High Court.
Mr. Farrell appeared before Magistrate Ayanna Baptiste DaBreo at the Road Town Police Station, where he was given a seven-year sentence for possession of an unlicensed firearm, and a $500 fine and six months in prison for possession of explosives.
The two sentences will run concurrently from the initial date of remand. Two months in prison will be added if the fine is not paid.
Ms. Baptiste DaBreo said she was empathetic that Mr. Farrell has five children to provide for, but could not make a sentencing decision based on that fact alone.
“You smile now, but your children are going to suffer,” she said. “They have to grow up with the knowledge that their father is in prison, … and it’s because of your choice.”
Uncovering the gun
Mr. Farrell was first charged with the firearm-related offences on Nov. 3 after officers from the Royal Virgin Islands Police Force and the Royal Cayman Islands Police Service detained him in East End.
The defendant was at the Moose Bar & Club House when he attempted to evade officers at both the front and back of the bar, according to Director of Public Prosecutions Kim Hollis.
The Crown alleged that Mr. Farrell took a black-and-silver handgun from his pocket and threw it into a nearby brick oven. One officer reportedly shouted “gun” to alert other officers, and Mr. Farrell was restrained.
A subsequent search of the area uncovered the nine-millimetre Smith & Wesson handgun, loaded with 11 rounds of ammunition.
The defendant told officers later that night during an interview that he had the weapon for protection, the Crown alleged, and that a scooter rider had fired shots at him a year before.
Murder charge
When Mr. Farrell appeared before the court on Nov. 14 on those charges, Ms. Hollis described his arrest as “fortuitous” because the Crown’s case against him for the murder of Devern “Snoopy” Stanley had also been “reaching fruition.”
The day after Mr. Farrell was charged with possession of a firearm and ammunition, he was charged with murder.
Mr. Stanley was last seen alive on June 5, 2016 in CCTV footage after leaving Crystals Nightclub, according to the DPP. His body was found almost two months later in Rogues Bay on July 28.
A post-mortem revealed two large fractures to Mr. Stanley’s jaw, a missing tooth, several chipped teeth and a fractured rib. The cause of death was determined to be blunt-force trauma.
Mr. Farrell has not yet been required to enter a plea for the murder charge because of the indictable nature of the offence and the current lack of a usable High Court building.