- Sent to jail

A Tortolian man offered an apology in Court on Monday after pleading guilty to possession of an unlicensed firearm and ammunition. It was the first firearm seized by police this year. Brandon Harrigan, 28, of Great Mountain was eventually sentenced Tuesday to 15 months imprisonment for being in possession of an unlicensed firearm and was fined $500 for the ammunition possession. Lawyer for the accused, Herbert McKenzie told Senior Magistrate Valerie Stephens that Harrigan should be made to pay a heavy fine and spared custodial sentence. The Magistrate disagreed. “I want to apologise to the Court, police, my family and the general public for what I have done. It was a stupid thing that I have done. I had no intentions of putting the firearm to use,” Harrigan said from the witness box

According to court documents, Harrigan was stopped trying to get past a police stop and search operation in the vicinity of Government House on January 21. According to information, he was proceeding east on the road towards Road Town in a 2004 Ford F150 double cab pick-up truck. After being stopped, police proceeded to search the vehicle where they found a black Glock 17 hand pistol in the center console. Police also found a magazine with 16 live rounds of ammunition.

Harrigan had initially told police that he tried to jump the line because he felt that there was a function at Government House which caused traffic to slow.

Before sentencing Harrigan, the Magistrate heard from Elihu Rhymer, who appeared as a character witness for the accused. Rhymer told the court that he knew Harrigan for 20 years as someone who was always helpful and was trying to do his best to help his father’s boating business. Rhymer said he was surprised when he heard that Harrigan was before the court on firearm charges, since he never displayed the character of a violent person. He asked the court to take into account Harrigan’s history and the fact that the young businessman has always acted responsible. Rhymer told prosecutor Valston Graham that he had very strong feelings about firearm offences.

“I believe that something should be done about the sources…so that citizens would not look to acquire weapons to protect themselves,” Rhymer said. Rhymer also said he will take the timeout to help with Harrigan’s rehabilitation by being more involved with him.

McKenzie told the court that his client has always been gainfully employed since the age of 17 and has always had a sense of direction. According to McKenzie, Harrigan has been remorseful about the entire situation out of a sense of recognition that he committed a criminal act. McKenzie argued that his client has two daughters and given his age, he still has a purpose to live for. He also argued that Harrigan never intended to use the firearm, noting that the entire offence has brought shame to his client’s family.  

In a release on the arrest, Superintendent Richard Holder noted that officers will be actively engaging in stop and searches as the year progresses.

“The times and places of these operations will invariably change, but we are going to make every effort to remove firearms from our streets,” he added.

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