KINGSTON, Jamaica — Two men have been issued suspended sentences after admitting to robbing school children.

Kamar Neil, 19, and Dwayne Barret, 29, had been in custody for six months on charges of robbery with aggravation when they appeared before Senior Parish Judge Sanchia Burrell in the Kingston and St Andrew Parish Court on Tuesday.

According to the prosecution, on September 19, 2024, four teenagers were walking along a Kingston roadway when a group of five or six men, including Neil and Barrett, chased them with machetes and knives, ordering them not to flee. The assailants then took the young women behind an abandoned building and stole three cell phones.

Neil and Barrett were apprehended by the police on the same day. While both men initially denied involvement in the robbery, they pled guilty at the earliest opportunity. They were in court on Tuesday for sentencing having spent six months behind bars.

In a plea to the crown, Barrett’s lawyer indicated that her client was deeply remorseful for his actions and understood the severity of the offence. Social inquiry reports attested to his good character and Barrett explained that being unemployed had led him to associate with poor company.

Both men maintained that they had no prior knowledge of the group’s intention to commit a robbery, having been told they were merely going out to “pick up” girls.

However, once they realised what was unfolding, they chose to remain with the group. For this, the two men, through their lawyers, expressed regret and remorse and accepted full responsibility.

In light of these factors, Judge Burrell sentenced Barrett to a 12-month sentence suspended for three years.

Neil also got a suspended sentence but an order was made that he be enrolled in literacy and skills training with assistance from the probation unit.

— Dana Malcolm