Handcuffed man escapes from police vehicle

A Kingston man, who prosecutors at the Kingston and St Andrew Parish Court say stole a pair of handcuffs as he escaped from a disabled police vehicle, was on Wednesday remanded in custody.

Jermaine Brown, 20, pleaded guilty to simple larceny and escaping custody. The court heard that on January 23, police from the Denham Town zone of special operations were conducting checks within the area when Brown, otherwise called 'Porridge Man', was accosted. He was informed that he is a suspect in a shooting incident and a murder, and he reportedly began behaving boisterously.

"Me nah go no weh, a just wah day yah unnu pick me up," he allegedly said. Officers tried to get hold of Brown, who started to push back at the lawmen and tried to free himself. He was informed of the offence of disorderly conduct but Brown continued to shout, causing a crowd to converge along Charles Street in Kingston. He was then placed in a police service vehicle and was handcuffed. It was further reported that Brown was being transported to a police station when the service vehicle became disabled. It was being pushed to a nearby mechanic when Brown somehow left the vehicle while handcuffed.

After the allegations were read in court, the attorney representing Brown told Senior Parish Judge Lori-Ann Cole-Montague that her client ran from the police as he was paranoid.

"His instructions are that he felt threatened because of certain things that were being said to him, so he ran. He was paranoid," the lawyer said. She added that Brown turned himself in to the police the same day. Cole-Montague said that she would not offer bail and considered a short period of remand until the date of sentencing. She requested that a community report is conducted for Brown to assist with sentencing. Brown is to return to court on March 30.