Anthony Swan Given 12 Years For Shooting
22-year-old Anthony Swan was sentenced today [Nov 1] to 12 years in prison after being found guilty in Supreme Court in relation to the December 16th 2009 attempted shooting of Troy “Yankee” Rawlins outside the C&R Discount Store on Court Street at approximately 10:30am that morning.
Mr. Swan, of Cut Road in St. George’s, was found guilty of a number of charges including a string of firearm possession offences. Mr Rawlins, 47, was subsequently fatally shot in a separate incident eight months later in August 2010, for which another man has been charged. During Mr Swan’s trial Mr. Rawlins previous statements were read into the record.
The CCTV video footage of the incident was released by the Police and also used as evidence during the trial. It can be viewed below:
Detective Chief Inspector Nicholas Pedro, Officer in Charge of the Serious Crime Unit said:
The Bermuda Police Service would like to acknowledge the significant sentence handed down today in the Supreme Court regarding Mr. Anthony Swan. Mr. Swan was convicted of firing multiple shots at persons with a firearm at a busy location on Court Street, Hamilton on 16th December, 2009. Fortunately, no members of the public were harmed during this incident, which clearly traumatized many members of our community. The flagrant disregard for life was apparent in chilling images of this incident captured on Hamilton CCTV cameras.
The sentencing of Mr. Swan today to 12 years imprisonment represents the culmination of several months of dedicated work by members of the Police Service, and the prosecutors in the office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP).
This should again serve as a strong reminder to all members of the public that gun and gang crime in any shape or form, will not be tolerated.
We would also like members of the public to note the sentence of Mr. Omari Gordon to ten years imprisonment in the Supreme Court today as well. Mr. Gordon discharged a firearm on 29th November, 2008 whilst frontline operational Police Officers were attempting to stop Mr. Gordon during a routine traffic patrol.
Assistant Commissioner of Police – Mr. David Mirfield said
“This once again demonstrates that those who choose to pick up guns and engage in criminal acts will be pursued, will be caught and punished by the courts. I sincerely hope that this long sentence of imprisonment will act as a deterrent.”
The disruption and reduction of gun & gang activity is a central focus of the Bermuda Police Service. Members of the Serious Crime Unit have worked tirelessly on these and other cases in recent months, and we would like to reassure every member of the community that the pursuit of justice for all victims of crime and making Bermuda safer remains our priority. This case, and other recent cases in the courts demonstrate our collective resolve with our community & Government partners to making Bermuda safer.
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Absolutely not a deterrent for trying to take someones life in Public!…These guys know how to work the prison system…do good and be out in five years….seems like the judges don’t know how to work on genuine criminals
Yes Brasco i agree i just posted something similar on the other article of the other guy that got caught.Guys go in for 13 years but then released 4 years later.By that time the public has forgotten how serious the time was when these guys went in ,and they can easily be released under the radar without a lot of public resistence.
Like i have said on many other posts these guys should have been stopped of their behaviour years ago,by the time they go into Jail for serious crimes ,unfortunately by that time it is to late and when they come out they are 5 times worse then when they went in ,
This sentence is a joke, what deterrent is the courts trying to make that shooting in public place is unacceptable! This individual will be eligible for parole in six years. The courts are not serious about crime, thats why we are seeing more gun incidents.
Can someone please inform these judges about the nature of these crimes!? THEY TRIED TO KILL/MURDER ANOTHER HUMAN BEING! 10 & 12 yrs is a joke! Especially since they probably won’t even do all of the time…unless the sentence was mandatory! Bermuda police/prosecutors/juries/judges & public….STOP winking @ crime!!! What we allow/ignore & refuse to challenge is what we sanction! Enough is enough!
Anthony keep ya head up and DON’T WORRY what the haters got to say, before you know it you’ll be out!!!!!!!!! Only the good Lord above knows the truth!!!!!!! Funny people think they know it all cause of the lies been told by news reporters that put what they wanna put in the papers.
There are no lies in that article.
He was found guilty of a number of charges including a string of firearm possession offences, and sentenced to 12 years in prison. This is 100% accurate.
Actually there were LIES cause 1st of all he was NOT on no phone footage portraying as if he was going harm anybody days prior to the incident so that was a LIE!!!!!!!!!! And tell me why BERNEWS that you didnt put that there were 2 other persons DNA found on the jacket???? Cause you obviously put what you want up and the negative stuff up!!!! Cause the jury find someone gulity dont mean their guilty!!!!! Obvious the jury dont know how to deal with cases cause clearly the cctv did not show the accused and person they found guilty shooting at anyone, all they saw was SOMEONE shooting so if they knew what they were doing they would have cleared the accused right there. How in this world can you find someone gulity of possesion of a firearm where there was no firearm found!!!
Again, the report is completely accurate. He was found guilty ans sentenced to 12 years in prison. That is what the article says, and it is accurate – whether you are pleased by that or not – it is accurate.
It is a report on his sentencing and the prison term received, not a report on the trial which concluded a time ago.
It is not what we “want” to put up, we hate shooting stories. We would prefer they never happen at all [as does all media and probably all of Bermuda], and wish we only had stories about good news, however this is not possible due to the actions of others. Blame the shooters, not us.
Cool, understood!!!!
But on another note is a gun being held to your head telling you to put the articles that you put up on Bernews NO so therefore you must like doing it!!!!!!! And Im not just talking about shooting incidents I’m talking about ALL NEGATIVE artigles that you post!!!!!
Friend…will you be sending money for his commissary??….Real friends don’t let friends ride Dirty….take your head out your backside and stay away from crime…..Live life, travel and see what the world has to offer….silly gayngster life doesn’t pay…..DUH!
I sure will thats what friends are for!!!! True friends let friends ride dirty LOL I just LOVE all the things you all have to say it just makes me smile. And quess what as his true friend I am Thanking the lord he got 12yrs cause it could ahve been worse and before you know it my friend will be out and on TOP of the world he may just be you, your mothers, daddy’s, son’s or daughters lawyer ONE DAY!!!!!!!!!!!!!! And when his defending you all that have the bad things to say now you’ll be thanking him when he gets you aquitted!!!!!!!
He could also be one of my friends killer by a stray bullet. Keep him in there.
This is why Bermuda is damaged beyond repair. We constantly have family and friends making excuses for the people committing violent acts of crime. I have never seen a country full of so many excuses.
First of all let me start by saying to my couin Anthony Swan, keep your head up and remain the strong young man that you are. The one and only God Almighty is in your corner and He is the only true judge. He knows all and sees all and God knows the truth! To the person named “Friend” that commented, I totally agree with you and I’m backing you 100%. I think that bernews misunderstood what you meant when you said “lies.” I know that what you meant by “lies” is the lies beening told and painted to portray Anthony as someone he as not. Yes bernews your report was 100% accurate as per what was said in the court room yesterday during Anthony’s sentencing, but everything that has been said about him since the start of all of this is Lies because of the fact that everything being printed about him being a gangster and soon on isn’t true. Now to my dear friend brasco, whoever you are. Yes you are entitled to your own opinion but there is no need for you to be nasty and sarcastic about something that I’m sure you have only followed in the news papers. I’m sure that if your truly knew Anthony you would take back everything you have said. I want you to remember that God doesn’t sleep and he doesn’t like ugly. Have a blessed day and God Bless you all!
Thanks for the clarification, much appreciated…
Firstly Anthony, I love you like life and we both know that God sees and knows all things not ‘man’. I feel honoured and priviledged to b blessed having you of my bloodline!
At all times stop and analyse things first before we start ‘flapping’. Most if not everybody who comments on such articles don’t even attemp to sit through the entire court case from day 1. Get your facts straight and also be thoughtful of these young men’s families who view these things. How could ppl seek to anger other during their time of surrow?? That’s cold. No one never knows the hour that is upon them and we shall stand in our judgements for what we think and speak. Careful how you direct your fire…backdraft is no joke. Thats what is wrong with our community, everyone seems to be so quick to give a negative instead of a positive, the William Lynch method is still in full effect after 400 yrs…SAD. If we start seeking to speak positive on these young men’s lives under these articles and amongst ourselves things could possibly change. But no we say…’mmm he aint my child’ or “hmph, they shoulda gave him more time”. We’ve lost our spark. We’ve lost our concept of ‘it takes a village to raise a child. Yes it is all about choices and the choices we make have circumstances but how you gonna speak OFF about someone and you haven’t even heard their side, what makes us always think that the things presented weren’t painted??? All hail the system berm berm we managed to lock up another young man! OH PLEASE!! Our society is in distress…SPIRITUAL WICKEDNESS IN HIGH PLACES AND THE RESULT OF THAT IS WHAT’S HAPPENING TO OUR YOUNG PEOPLE. There’s always a bigger picture….Minister Farakhan(sp)flew to our country, spoke and revealed to us what the real deal is and we still haven’t wised up, stood up and cast judgement on the REAL criminals!
Cousin…Life is about choices, yes we all make mistakes and we all are far from perfect. Like many family relatives say “My Son/Cousin/Brother” is not a bad person, keep your head up, etc….As these family members prepare these defence speaches, why not try to prevent badness from happening. I’m sure you’ve seen the company/associates that have congregated around your cousin.
It’s kind of hypricrital to say God doesn’t like Ugly when it was ugly to try and kill someone in Public.
Are you saying that this offence wasn’t bad?
Exactly @brasco. Everyone who’s ever murdered someone has someone standing behind them saying they are a “lovely, kind hearted person” or something along those lines. Lovely kind hearted people don’t commit offences like this. But you’re right, everyone is entitled to their own opinion. He probably goes to church every sunday with his —— and then goes and shines his gun and thinks about how he’s going to go about killing someone. Sounds charming.
Jay please make this the first and last time you bring up his grandmothers name!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! And no he does not do that cause he has no gun to do it Thank you!!!! keep in mind that his grandmother is a child of God and for you bringing her up just hope that he dont strike you or any of your family memebers down!!!!!!
It was likely meant as just a phrase, with no specific insult meant to the person in question, but in respect to your point and to err on safety’s we edited it, as of course family members are off limits..
You’re letting this guy go around and say “RIP haters!” and “f#ck you f#ck this f#ck that” and I say a sentence with NO harm to his grandmother or family and I’M edited?
COME ON!
Yup and you never know the same thing might just happen to you one day. We as ppl never know whats in store for us. You can go down the street one day with a passanger on your bike or in your car and accidently kill them or get in a fight and hit the peraon in the wrong spot and kill them and guess what you will be labeled as a murderer regardless of whether it was intentionally. And all your doing is assuming thats what he done anyway, you know nothing. May God bless you too!!!!!!
@ Cousin I am with you and “friend” … I say time and time again when posting comments on articles of a similar nature..”If you don’t know than you don’t know”..shame that you can blast someone on just a tidbit of information that you have read and pass judgement… “Cousin” I know what you are referring to when you say “lies” and let’s not even get into “misconstrued and magically appearing evidence”…Bless your family and continue to support Anthony.. you know the true deal!! and @ Brasco “gaygnster” is getting old….
The sad part is that they all have so much to say but if they were near the accused trial (and I still say accused) and not dwelling on newspaper articles than perhaps they would understand it a bit more. RIP HATERS MWAAAHHHHHH XOXOXOXO
If the details that came out in court were lies, and you know this and can prove it, why have you not spoken up? Provide eveidence to ensure the person that is in prison now was found not guilty? If the wrong man is in jail for the crime and you know this – why are blaming those law abiding citizens that want to feel safe in the community?? It is simple.
Excuses, excuses, excuses. The island of excuses.
Ok Brasco I tried to come across in a nice way but your are really pushing my buttons. But I will keep it humble. For one anything that I or any of my family memebers have said about my cousin is NOT a defense speech! He may have associated himself with the wrong company but it doesnt mean that he committed this crime he has be convicted of. And no I am not saying that this offense isnt bad but how do you know that he commited this crime? Because he has been found guilty on very little evidence I guess his guilty in your book. I guess your perfect and never associatied yourself with bad company once apon a time in your life. But this is a pointless argument that is just going to keep going back and forward and I’m going to be the bigger person and end it right here. You will keep commenting to defend yourself but you will never truly know until you have been placed in this position. Go ahead and throw all the stones you want because I guess you windows arent made of glass. I will continue to encourage my cousin and stay by his side as I’m sure you would do if it was one of your family members. There is no need for me to continue because I know the truth and like I said in my last post…God is the ONLY true Judge. God Bless you and yours!
@Friend…..we post 86% positive stories, a staggeringly high ratio.
It is this simple, if people weren’t shooting each other – then we wouldn’t post it.
However, many people do not read or comment on good news, over a thousand good news stories have not a single comment, sad to say.
How many congratulations have you made to our athletes when they win and we post it? How many times have you read the business success stories? How many times have you gone to the profile section and read about 70 great Bermudians?
Are you going to leave this thread and take time to post supportive comments on some of our good stories? Please feel free to, seriously, we would like more positive comments.
Again, blame lies on the criminals who commit the acts, not on honest hard working people doing their job – which is what we are.
@ Bernnews you are absoutely correct, ppl do tend to focus and comment on the negative news.
However, all I have to say is that my friend did not committ this offense. I will just let them all keep talking. I’m not blaming the individuals becasue to be honest if the stuff wasnt being posted there would be no comments.Like where is the respect for the individuals family, how do you think they feel seeing all these negative comments and I just hope when it happens to your family or friend one day that it does get posted.
Enjoy the rest of your afternoon.
@ Cousin and friend…bow out graciously!! I understand where you are coming from..and I am fully behind you…Too bad for fear of legal remifications that you can’t present all that you know..yes explain DNA of others on jacket..No clear image of person on CCTV footage or Police officer in possession of helmet 3 days or more before it was submitted as evidence…Don’t defend yourself anymore…you are presented with..and they too are not privy to everything…Follow the advice that you have given to Anthony..Keep your chins up and stay blessed!!!
Pressed send too early ..my apologies…last part should read…In defence of Bernews they only present what they have received and they too are not privy to everything..Follow the advice that you have given Anthony..keep your chins up and stay blessed!!!
@Jays – sorry – can’t direct reply above, which on another note, we really need to get fixed, its not exactly impressive.
Did we let any profanity slip through? Sorry, we try and catch it, but have erred a good 3-4 times, as its only one person [me lol] monitoring them 20 hrs a day, so fatigue does set in at times. Anyone plz feel free to email us if we do – or comment and point it out, its actually a help.
We see your point, totally, its a figure of speech that many use, just erring on the safe side in case anyone somehow decided that it was a personal attack. No offense intended, sorry if it seemed that way.
Look this is what I’m confused on. He’s not saying “f#ck” he’s saying “fuk” so I can see how it slips through. But where in the world is it appropriate for someone to say “f#ck off” (or whatever he said along those lines) and “RIP HATERS” and it be considered an appropriate comment for this post? I don’t see why it should have been on here at all. Sure he’s entitled to his opinion but if he can’t say “Jays, I don’t agree with you” instead then it really shouldn’t be tolerated.
Fair enough if his tiny brain is so small he saw it as a personal attack on the guys Grandma, sensor me – I’m sure 98% of readers will agree I wasn’t trying to talk about the guys family in that manner, but then to turn around and let him say all this stuff isn’t exactly fair. To me it feels like my opinion is of less importance than this guy who thinks running around saying profanities and saying RIP HATERS (sorry I’m not in a gang, I don’t know what that means, but I’m guessing it doesn’t mean “have a blessed evening”).
This guy is littering your website with unessecary and rude comments, and as soon as someone goes “hey wait a minute” you guys run to the rescue!
/rant *sigh*
The run to the rescue bit was a bit much cause I know he has been attacking you guys as well calling this post unecessary, but I hope you can see where I became frustrated.
We are on the same wavelength, as far as profanity, we censor the actual correct word, but variations [like how we edited your examples just now] we let fly. Either way people complain, but we think its the best chance of a compromise between free speech and not having a profanity littered site.
98% of readers would likely agree, probably 99.9%. Its really a figure of speech widely used, that almost all would agree with.
Bear in mind – as comments show – there are people out there angry the media covered this case [happened when he got convicted too] so we just erred on the side of safety with the family figure of speech.
For example [and the people are probably reading this] we have actually had phone calls asking us to delete comments saying he should get more time – and saying how we shouldn’t allow people to say it. We have even been asked to delete the whole story. That we won’t even entertain…which 99.9% of our readers would also likely agree with.
There are a handful of people are looking for something to get this article taken down, so we wish to ensure we give them nothing, and you somewhat got caught in the cross fire so to speak. Feel free to give us call if you like, easier to explain the greater detail…
Thank you Bernews for your all your efforts! As you can tell approximately 99.9% of the people appear to love your site!
Keep the unobstructed information flowing!
Good work!
What I don’t understand is why when it’s a family member or close friend people get all defensive about what is being said. I understand your loyalty as a friend and relative, however “if” and I say “if” because I wasn’t there but “if” he did do what they are saying then he deserves what he gets, just because you know him in a different light or refuse to see what really is doesn’t mean that he doesn’t deserve the pay the price for his actions. So you can be a true friend or devoted relative, but in the end it is what it is and since he got caught he has to pay for it. Maybe next time he and others will hopefully think about the consequences before carrying out the action.
And before someone says I don’t know what I am talking about I am just saying in general but using this situation as a reference so when I am saying him I mean whomever is responsible.
I CO-SIGN THAT!!…at the end of the day We all are “Cousins”…”Peace and Love” is what we need….Let’s help our brothers who keep making bad choices to use that strength in a more positive direction.
I hope the accused fulfills his dream of becoming a lawyer, it’s just sad that this is the route he took to obtain that dream.
I wish the younger so called gangsters read these blogs and used them for inspiration to do good, becuase we Bermudians are sick of reading BAD News!
Somebody always got something to say….you’re missing the point…its not about what or who we see in a different light…its about what we know to be true and what’s been TWEAKED and that’s the injustice we are truly burning out and THAT’S the reason why we are NOT defending the folly and defending the truth. I am also sure that all of us can agree that yes if you do the crime u do the time or the consequences put in place for the crime. But if you were reading certain posts carefully you wouldn’t be directing your fire at the friends and family. Like I said earlier…becareful where you direct your fire…backdraft ain’t no joke….
We are experiencing a time of surrow…along with a lot of families for that matter…how the heck do you expect us to feel seeing such comments? You wanna know how it feels…IT CUTS LIKE KNIFE!!!
More and more i feel less proud to be a Bermudian…such narrow mindedness…always looking at whats in front of us physically instead of looking at the bigger picture. Haven’t heard anyone, besides “Peace and Love” on another post, ever come up with a solution besides torture and incarceration for our young people…now that makes me TOTALLY DIGUSTED.
I hear what you are saying because I have been on that side of the fence with a family member but as I was saying I am not talking per say about him as much as anyone who finds themselves in a situation like this. I know how it feels trust me but it just makes me sick to hear people say you don’t know what you are talking about when there are certain facts that we do know about and once again let me say I am not only talking about this situation. I feel for his family and friends and “if” he is innocent I hope that he is able to prove it and they find the right person, but no matter how you look at it there will always be people with something to say regardless it be good or bad, no it doesn’t feel good to see all the negative talk but everyone has the right to speak their minds and that is something I had to take in as well.
Friend STHU!! this is the reason why these young man act the way they do because this type of behaviour is justified by the family and friends! Swan doesn’t even deny what he did, he got caught and convicted thats it! He is more positive by now understanding that it is now time for him to make something better of his life, by trying to get a degree whilst incarcerated. You ever heard the saying, Change the way you think and change your world! People could say what they want on these boards, you are just negative. I am glad Swan is away from people like you, maybe now he will become a more productive person in our society! What he did was unacceptable and people have a right to feel disgusted by this.
Well said Lisa…
HOW ABOUT YOU STHU!
I AM WITH YOU ON “THIS IS THE TIME TO GET A DEGREE WHILST INCARCERATED.” WHICH HE SAID HE WANTED TO DO. AND BY DOING SO I DO BELIEVE HE WILL COME OUT AS A BETTER PERSON!
AND NO MATTER WHAT HE IS ALWAYS GOING TO HAVE NEGATIVE PEOPLE AROUND HIM SO DON’T BE GLAD HE IS AWAY FROM “FRIEND” THERE IS MORE NEGATIVE PPL OUT THERE AND WILL BE FOR THE REST OF HIS LIFE! AND HE STILL WILL COME OUT ON TOP! ESPECIALLY WHEN HE RECEIVES THAT DEGREE!
Shooting at people is also negative…
@ Jay all I can say is that “if you can’t handle the heat” than stay out of the kitchen….I’m not saying the response you received is appropriate but you need to toughen up!! I have been called names that were not so nice and so on and so forth..however, what I learned was not to take it personal! I stopped commenting for a while because it started to be a drag..if you are not on the same page as some you will get backlash…this is an open forum and this is a place where you can openly express yourself..some the right way and some the wrong way…Some people use certain language as part of their everyday speech.. I use that certain language only when I am angry.. I have used angry “letters” never spelling the word out but you knew what I meant and some of the “bernews regulars” hoped all over me for that..oh well..you win some and you lose some..our society cannot be all “peaches and cream” becuase if it was we would be living in a mundane society where we all think, speak and act alike…pretty boring huh? That’s why life throws us a mixed fruit basket, apples and oranges per say, just to shake things up! If you don’t agree with someone so be it…if someone doesn’t agree with you than take it with a “grain of salt” I’ll probably get negative backlash from posting this as my opinion but so be it..trust I will not lose any sleep over it…
Thank you for that essay on how the world works. Frankly, I don’t care. I’m all about equality and treating others how you would like to be treated. The world wouldn’t be a boring place for me if everyone who said “shut the f*ck up!” when you expressed your opinion vs saying “I don’t agree – and this is why”. Sure, debate with me as much as you’d like. Just do it in a mature manner.
And the next time you want to tell someone not to take something “personally” you have no idea what the person has gone through in their life and they can take what is being said however they so feel.
10 4
@ Jay let me be the FIRST TO TELL YOU THAT YOU ARE NOT THE FIRST NOR ARE YOU THE LAST WHO WILL EXPERIENCE THINGS THAT ARE NOT SO GREAT IN LIFE..MY LIFE HAS NOT BEEN ALL THAT EITHER AND i HAVE TO LIVE EACH WEEKEND WONDERING IF MY SONS ARE GOING TO BE OKAY BECAUSE WE HAVE JACK “A’S” RUNNING AROUND HERE WILLY NILLY AND DOING AS THEY LIKE!!!! YOU WERE OFFENDED BY USE OF INAPPROPRIATE LANGUAGE I WAS JUST OFFERING YOU A BIT OF ADVICE..AND YES YOU ARE QUITE RIGHT YOU CAN TAKE WHAT IS BEING SAID HOWEVER YOU FEEL…BUT IT IS OBVIOUS THAT IT BOTHERS YOU AND IT IS CAUSING YOU STRESS…LET IT GO..MY POSTING WAS NOT TO PUT YOU DOWN..I EVEN USED MYSELF AS AN EXAMPLE… OF PEOPLE RESPONDING TO ME IN A WAY THAT I DID NOT FEEL WAS APPROPRIATE..MY APOLOGIES IF I “STEPPED ON YOUR TOES” AND UPSET YOU EVEN FURTHER…I WAS ONLY OFFERING ADVICE AND YOU HAVE MISUNDERSTOOD MY INTENTIONS…I WAS ONLY TRYING TO SHOW YOU HOW TO LET THINGS SLIDE LIKE “WATER OFF OF A DUCKS BACK”…DON’T LET PEOPLE SEE THAT THEY’VE UPSET YOU..ANYWAY NO SENSE GOING ON BECAUSE IT IS OBVIOUS THAT YOU WOULDN’T BE ABLE TO HANDLE CONSTRUCTIVE CRITICISM…SO 10 4 GOOD BUDDY! PEACE OUT!!!! PEACE AND LOVE!!! HAVE A BLESSED EVENING!
IF THAT PERSON WANTS TO TALK… LET THEM! U DO NOT HAVE TO READ IT!
@ Friend #2..not sure you are referring to my post but if you are…read Jays complaints and the point he was making (which is a valid point)and then have a careful read of mine…if you read both with understanding you will see that I am actually offering him advice….
Big up ANTHONY.. NUFF LOVE.. FRIEND 4 LIFE.. HOLD YOUR HEAD UP..