Windward Island and Windies cricketer, Andre Fletcher, was fined $2,000 for possession of ammunition when he appeared before a magistrate in Wesley on Friday morning.
He was arrested at the Douglas Charles Airport on Thursday evening after the 50 rounds of .22 ammunition was found in his possession.
He was leaving Dominica, where he has been training for the past couple of days with his team, the Windward Island Volcanoes for the upcoming Caribbean Premier League (CPL), when the incident occurred.
Manager of the Volcanoes, Lockhart Sebastien, told DNO on Friday that the $2,000 fine was paid and attempts were being made to have him leave Dominica “to get some rest.”
He said Fletcher did not intend to commit any criminal acts since he was unaware the ammunition was in his carry-on luggage.
“There was no intention of criminal activities,” he said. “He did not realize he had the ammunition.”
Sebastien said the incident will not have any impact on the Volcanoes in the upcoming CPL.
“It could happen to anybody,” he stated.
Fletcher is a Grenadian national and according to ESPN Cricinfo he “has played 15 ODIs and 22 Twenty20 internationals for West Indies; his most recent appearance being in a T20 game against South Africa in Durban in January this year. He has played 60 first-class matches and was a regular in the Windwards Islands side during the 2014-15 season.”
It’s a good thing it wasn’t Vescott Jones working at the security check point. He probably would have taken the country’s laws into his own hand again and allow the man a break to go back outside to give it to someone.
Dominica dont manufacture bullets is it that there is plenty of it on island???just thinking
Sebo, you really lose it. You think you making any sense? You think in these day and age when security whilst travelling is high on everybody’s list, you mean Mr. Fletcher as an international traveler does not know he has to properly secure his luggage – his carry on luggage? I can understand if it showed up in is checked luggage at the end of his journey. That is a completely different situation. 50 rounds of ammo shows up in his carry on and he pleads innocence and intelligent members of our community take that as a good excuse.
it’s very rare that someone can quickly slip in something like that in your carry-on luggage , though at times you don’t always have it holding. What if it was already there long before , and he never opened his luggage , until at custom. What if the owner was traveling along .Lot’s of speculation , just as it may well have ben his , and thought he would get by easily .
$2,000 fined and sent on his way? Lenient fine.
So when he arrived in Grenada would his luggage not be searched?
I do not believe that he was unaware of the ammunition. Big excuse.
If he was unaware of it being in his suitcase, when he unpacked his suitcase what would he do with the ammunition? The man lied!
He should have been fined at least $10,000. This would be a message for people as he.
really sebo…i wonder who pack his carry one….ME i suppose….FOOLISHNESS
so Andre if the law charge 2000 so much are they going to charge our own people i hop they give them the same amount that they gave u
police from Portsmouth are in prison for killing a man for having Ammunition on his person one law for the rich and one the the nobody
Well done lads that proves no favoritism to any one irrespective who you are do your job honestly as oppose to the crab back merchants
So who gave it to him or should I say who put it in his carryon unknowingly?
Ask yourself when it happen to you! Sometimes you need to be open and too many ……… comments come up. We must put ourselves in others places.
Charlie charlie
When we big, is big we big. Biggity knows no law. We de big never wrong.
(Then what happened?)
Hmmmm…..trying to equate that to crab backs…one round of ammunition equals one agouti or manicou or even a man! Conclusion: more serious than crab backs!! This man is an international traveler, so I can buy his defense!
Didn’t u read “50” rounds. What’s your point?
It would be better if no attempt was made to give a response instead of this foolishness. I am a former National Cricketer and there is no way bullets would be in my carry-on. So again this could not have happen to anyone. I will venture to say as a former cricketer, one sometimes feels a certain level of privilege because you are known and feel like people will cut you some slack. Fletch, smarten up your focus should be on cricket and this bullets business is extra curriculum activities that takes your mind from the game. Right now everywhere you go people will possibly ask about this which can result in unnecessary distractions. Oh another thing might be any silly incident can cause people to associate it to this bullet incident. Best of luck Fletch and I hope you are mentally tough to deal with the media.
maybe if u guys tried to find out what really happened maybe u guys wont be so quick to judge the young man… its interesting how dominicans glorify the drug men that kills our youths and break up families by chanting let the young man go he have make a living….it was a simple misunderstanding…the guys is a sports embassador and holder of an official passport do u really think hes gonna jeopardize that? the guy was unecessarily and publicly embarassed because of over zealous secutiry personnel trying to prove something..
Remarkable, carrying live ammunition illegally, especially on a passenger aircraft is a serious offence and ignorance of the law is no defence.
Th man was detained thursday evening and on his merry way friday afternoon with a slap on the wrist and a token fine. How is that possible in Dominica? if nothing else if goes to prove that it all depends who you are and what your connections are. Obviously the power that be did not want details, such as the source of the ammo, disclosed in court. No blemish must fall on the CPL my friends, or those who have vested interest in it , come what may. One law for the rich and powerful and another for the poor malaway. A truly equitable society in a socialist country??
What nonsense…..he didnt know he had a whole gun in his luggage…people are not stupid…the gun crept into his bag?…oh plzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz
ammunition is not a gun. read before commenting people
Read please. There was no gun. Just .22 ammo which is hunting ammunition freely available for sale.
0.22 ammo still kills. It is serious, far more serious than crab back indeed.
“Freely available for sale” if you are in possession of a gun owner’s license. It makes sense that if I am not authorize to carry a firearm in Dominica, then I should not be able to purchase ammunition. In fact the ammo is held at police headquarters and not at the respective license gun dealer’s storeroom. So the ammo is not “freely available for sale”.
The report makes no mention of a gun, bullets only! Suppose the young man has a licensed 0.22 caliber firearm at his home in Grenada, trying to carry that ammo on a passenger plane out of Dominica still does not make sense because he could have legally bought the same in Grenada. Who gave it to him or, if he purchased it, where did he get it from and for what purpose? Some one in Dominica, who has influence over the police must have instructed them to get him out of the country asap without any inquiry. Elementary, my dear Watson!
his is a liscen firearm holder as well
License firearm holder in Dominica?
I think Charlie the pencil game demon placed it in his bag. Charlie can you hear me!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
“It could happen to anybody,” he stated. Oh really… sure,sure you all should google .22 caliber ammunition
you a quite correct cuz a few years ago the owner of a radio station was going through security and forgot to leave his firearm home and only realize while going to security at melvillehall.. another occasion that same guy travelled to st Thomas and had 5 rounds of amuntition in his pants pocket inside his bag..the only reason he wasn’t detained by the authourities is because he was a police officer in the virgin islands..the ammunition was only discovered on entering st Thomas where as the gun was picked up so he left with immigration here and collect on his return…. and for you ppl out there it is not illegal to travel with ammunition given that the proper procedures are followed..
Was he the holder of a firearm license in the calibre he was arrested and charged for Mr manager?
That is the only way I can contend it was an oversight and the ammunition was secured in the bag.
Did he enter Dominica with the said ammunition, or did he acquire it locally?
Answer these questions and I will accept your explanation then.
what if another player snuck it in his bag. 22 rounds are smaller than a pencil and about 1″ so……………. I would snick something in to get away would you?
I fine that was carelessness on his part, to travel with all those ammunition , what was he thinking? Nonetheless he got a small fine, I hope he learned his lesson
hmph.
Aylas…It’s as good a defence as any other i’ve heard. I would have said the same thing if I had been in his place. ” I don’t know anything about that officer. Those bullets are not mine.”
That’s my story and I’m sticking to it.
Can’t say his defence is genuine – but these things do happen.
Lol @ doll face
50 rounds of .22 ammo and he did not know it was in his carry on? boy ohh boy