Shopkeeper remanded on gun charges

Ferdinand Schaddle, 58, of 1293 Section C, Grove, East Bank Demerara, was remanded to prison on charges of illegal possession of firearm and ammunition by a city Magistrate.  Schaddle pleaded not guilty to the charge which stated that on November 2, 2016 at Omai Landing, Region Eight, he had in his possession a firearm that is to say a 12-gauge shotgun along with a 12-gauge cartridge without being the holder of a firearm licence.  According to the prosecution, Police were on a routine search for guns and ammunition when they caught up with the defendant who was acting in a suspicious manner.  A search was conducted on the defendant’s premises which unearthed the gun and ammunition. Schaddle was told and cautioned about the Police ranks’ findings, but responded that he was only keeping the gun for his friend to hunt.  The defendant was denied bail when the prosecution objected on the grounds of the nature of the offence.  The matter was transferred to Mahdia Magistrate’s Court, for January 17, 2017.