Five men, including the owner of Nembhard’s Pet Shop, pleaded guilty last week to charges related to the sale of lottery tickets.
Linton Nembhard, 57, admitted using the business premises as a common gaming house for the purpose of a lottery. After hearing the facts, Magistrate Grace Donalds imposed the maximum fine allowed under the 1996 Gambling Law — $400.
She also ordered the forfeiture of $1,475 from monies seized from Nembhard at the time of his arrest. A charge of selling lottery tickets was not proceeded with.
Arlington John Connor, 61, pleaded guilty to selling lottery tickets at the shop. He was fined $350 and, of the money seized from him, $610.20 was ordered forfeit.
Godfrey Seaton, 43, was fined $300 for buying lottery tickets.
Radcliffe Dunn, 41, and Kerville Lorraine Johnson, 47, also acknowledged buying lottery tickets. They each received a conditional discharge after Attorney Clyde Allen explained their status on the island.
Senior Crown Counsel Gail Johnson told the court police officers entered Nembhard’s Pet Shop on Friday, 25 January this year. The shop is located on Dr. Roy’s Drive in downtown George Town.
The senior officer observed Nembhard and Dunn seated behind the counter. He saw them exchange paper and then Nembhard placed something under the counter.
Officers searched the area and recovered ticket books, a blue pouch and a container of money.
Seaton and Johnson were also in the store and they were searched. Each man was found to have a lottery ticket on his person.
To the rear of the store Connor was seen seated with ticket books and cash. He was observed writing the tickets. Officers found $890 on him.
Ms Johnson said it was not alleged that Seaton and Johnson had bought their tickets at the store.
She advised the court that in the container under the counter there were 15 exhibits, which the Crown said were monies that had lottery tickets stapled into them
She and Mr. Allen had gone through items in a brown briefcase, which was Nembhard’s property. Inside the briefcase were a number of pouches, his personal wallet and brown paper bags with funds and names written on them. After receipts were produced to show legitimate earnings and customer deposits for legitimate purchases, the Crown did not seek forfeiture of all of the money.
Under the Gambling Law, a person in possession of a lottery ticket is presumed to have bought the ticket, she said.
In addition to a fine, the penalty clauses of the law provide for a term of imprisonment ‘with or without hard labour’. Ms Johnson said she had not found any precedent for a prison sentence.
Mr. Allen told the court that Nembhard conducts a legitimate business and employs staff for the store, which is fairly well stocked. That was why he could account for the funds in his briefcase.
His client pleaded to the one charge – that in the back of his store tickets were being sold, contrary to the law. He had not fully appreciated the law because there are public auctions, with tickets being sold for cars and such. ‘Those are sanctioned by government and the funds are for charitable purposes,’ Mr. Allen said.
The lottery is not sanctioned by government, although it appears to be quite prevalent. Someone coming to the island might think it was legitimate, he suggested.
Dunn and Johnson were relative newcomers on work permits, Mr. Allen explained. They are from Jamaica, where gambling is legal. They did not know it was against the law in Cayman. Johnson’s tickets were spent and he had not thrown them away. Dunn had a ticket he had purchased somewhere else.
Mr. Allen accepted that ignorance is no excuse, but if they were found guilty it might be a matter that the Immigration Board took into account in considering their permits.
He could not make the same plea on behalf of Seaton because that defendant had been here a number of years.
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