Ex-soldier imprisoned

Garrick Lewis, a 25-year-old former Jamaica Defence Force soldier from Lower Mall Road, Kingston 11, was sentenced to a total of 35 years imprisonment after being convicted for serious firearms offences in the Supreme Court Gun Court Division.

Lewis found himself on the wrong side of the law after the Major Organised Crime and Anti-Corruption Agency executed a search and seizure at his home in November 2024 as part of an ongoing cybercrime investigation. The soldier was implicated in a phishing scam that reportedly defrauded the National Commercial Bank of $47 million. During the operation, authorities discovered 15 5.56mm cartridges and five .38mm cartridges, prompting charges against Lewis for unauthorised possession of ammunition and dealing in prohibited weapons.

At sentencing, on March 13, Justice Vaughn Smith gave him the mandatory minimum sentence of 15 years' imprisonment for unauthorised possession of ammunition, and 20 years' imprisonment for dealing in prohibited weapons. The sentences will concurrently, which means Lewis will only serve 20 years.