Eric Nibbs of Belle Vue was ordered to pay $750 in fines after he was found guilty in the Magistrate's Court of ‘Resisting Arrest’ and ‘Use of a telephone without a hands-free device’ while police were responding to a dispute at his residence. Photo: VINO/File

He was fined $500 for resisting arrest and $250 for use of the cellphone. He has up to July 31, 2020, to pay the fines, or he would spend two months in prison for the resisting arrest charge and four days for the use of cellphone charge.

He was also charged with ‘Threatening Language’, but he was found not guilty of that offence.“I am satisfied beyond reasonable doubt that the defendant did resist arrest on the date in question, and thus I find him guilty of resisting arrest and guilty of using a cellular phone while driving without the aid of a hands-free device,” Magistrate Ayanna O. Baptiste-DaBreo said.

Allegations

On May 23, 2016, members of the Royal Virgin Islands Police Force (RVIPF) went to Huntums Ghut where the defendant’s mechanic shop was located.

They were accompanied by the defendant’s children’s mother, who requested police intervention to get her belongings from his residence in Belle Vue as he was allegedly reluctant to hand over her possessions.

The police followed the defendant to Belle Vue, and it was during that time that he racked up the offences.

He allegedly failed to adhere to a female police officer who asked him to stop the vehicle and allegedly said: “hold on, this officer trying to harass me and I’m going to crush her,” to someone on the telephone.

Upon hearing the statement, the officer took it to be a threat and informed him that she was going to arrest him for Threatening Language and use of a cellphone without a hands-free device.

He then resisted the arrest, and a male officer had to intervene to arrest him.

He was brought back to the house so that the female’s belongings could be retrieved and he was later escorted to the Road Town Police Station where the charges were laid against him.