Tuesday, May 7, 2013
POLITICAL activist Omar Archer has pleaded not guilty to intentional libel and two counts of threats of death.
The 41-year-old, of Lewis Street, who is a former PLP member and one time chairman of the Bahamas Democratic Movement (BDM) appeared before Nassau magistrates today.
It came after a threat to shoot National Security State Minister Keith Bell with an AK47 appeared on a Facebook page purporting to belong to Mr Archer.
On Thursday evening, a long message published on Omar Archer Sr’s dedicated page on the internet website Facebook, included a series of allegations concerning the government, the police and crime in a post that has since been deleted but was being “shared” across social media.
It concluded with a threat to Keith Bell, Minister of State in the Ministry of National Security: “Those couple bodyguards Bell have and that small gun cannot save him from what is to come. It’s a mad fire ting going on now and he is on top of the list to be executed. I might be dead and gone before it happens but it will happen. From what I understand his face will be shot completely with an AK47 to send a clear and present message.”
Archer was arrested the following day, Friday, around 5.30pm on Dodge Road.
Director of Public Prosecutions Vinette Graham-Allen objected ‘strongly’ to bail being granted for Archer.
Archer said he had been awarded government contracts, his attorney afterwards describing his client as a ‘landscaper.’
Despite the objection, the magistrate exercised discretion and granted him $15,000 bail with reporting restrictions and a strong warning that any publication of threats could jeopardise his bail.
Archer switched to the PLP and ran for the party chairmanship in 2008.
Comments
John says...
Will be interesting to see the outcome of this affair and also that of Rodney Moncurs'. It is bad enough when police and other persons are injured, come under fire or lose their lives in the line of duty. It is much more serious when public officials or law enforcement officers recieve death threats for carrying out their duties .In this day and time any and all threats have to be taken seriously. Not only do persons have the ability to carry out threats when they make them, but they also, most likely, have the inention of carrying out any threats they make. We cannot allow the Bahamas to get like places Colombia and Mexico, where the execution of policemen and judges and other public figures is commonplace
Posted 7 May 2013, 4:55 p.m. Suggest removal
audleymitchell says...
The status of the person should not matter. It is unwise and illegal to make death threats in a public forum...in writing.
There must be clear consequences.
Posted 7 May 2013, 5:06 p.m. Suggest removal
jackflash says...
Agreed, but it seems that status does matter, after ll Keod Smith tampered with a crime sceen and wasn't even questioned!
Never heard anything more about it.
Me or you would have been locked up and who knows wat...
Posted 7 May 2013, 5:10 p.m. Suggest removal
rebirth says...
And no mention that he campaigned for the FNM and is a member of the FNM now?
Posted 7 May 2013, 6:55 p.m. Suggest removal
positiveinput says...
Did anyone ever got to read the full post. After reading the post and comprehending what was printed, anyone with common sense should have understood that Mr Archer was relaying information he had gathered from some source other than himself because a part of the post included 'I had just found out'. Even in the portion printed above states "From what i understand ..., never once did Mr. Archer post that he was going to do anything. By the way Tribune, why not print how it starts, 'I have to bring to the light what I have just found out'. Instead you just jumped straight to it concludes. Also included in his post was that he may be dead and gone but he heard it will happen. How could that be a man who is threatening somebody. On the other hand an individual whom struck and kill two people and leave the scene can't make the papers to report being charged. WOW Like the article says it was a long script, but if you can't duplicate the full message, don't pick out portions that would have a different meaning to a message. Remember when Minister L. Miller said "Bahamians Stupid". Well whats happening now is like that. A portion of a full message is being extracted to make the meaning of it totally different from what it was really saying.
Posted 7 May 2013, 10 p.m. Suggest removal
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