Man pleads guilty to robbery says that he’s no thief

Though he pleaded guilty to robbery in the Kingston and St Andrew Parish Court last Thursday, Xavier Blackwood, 23, is adamant that he did not steal the device from the complainant.

Blackwood was remanded in custody after pleading guilty to robbery with aggravation following an incident on Norman Road, Kingston, about 2:50 p.m. on April 29. It was reported that the complainant was on his way from school to meet his father, but observed three men, one of whom was later identified as Blackwood, walking towards him. The complainant indicated that Blackwood grabbed him, taking a smartphone from his pocket. One of the other men reportedly took money from the complainant. The court heard that about 15 seconds after the complainant was robbed, his father arrived and he informed him of what had occurred. The father and son went in search of the men. When they were spotted, the complainant's father began sounding his horn. But when the men noticed him, they ran. Police on patrol saw what was happening and chased the men. When they were accosted, the smartphone was taken from Blackwood's pants. But Blackwood denied that he is a thief.

"First and foremost, Your Honour, I am not a thief and I did not make any attempt to rob this young man. I was preventing the incident from escalating," Blackwood said.

Senior Parish Judge Lori-Anne Cole-Montaque then asked why he pleaded guilty to the offence, to which Blackwood replied that the phone was found in his possession.

"Who is the person who took the phone? How you came to be in possession of the phone exactly? At what point you got this phone? What are the circumstances, specifically, in terms of how did the police get the phone from you?" Cole-Montaque asked.

"I honestly don't know the person. The two young men jump the park fence, Your Honour, which the phone fell from one of the young men and I took it up and put it in my back pocket," Blackwood explained.

He was made the subject of a fingerprint order and is to return to court on June 23, when he is to be sentenced.