Soldier Fined For Being Absent For Seven Years
A Bermuda Regiment soldier who was “absent without leave” for seven years has been fined after returning home from overseas. The individual was detained at the Bermuda airport when he recently returned to the island after an extended stay abroad.
Regiment Adjutant Major Benjamin Beasley said the soldier had been given a “substantial” fine after appearing in front of new Commanding Officer Lt Col Michael Foster-Brown and returned to the active duty list.
Maj Beasley added: “This is a good example of what can happen if people take it upon themselves not to turn up for Regiment duty. There are around 100 people on our list of those who have failed to fulfil their responsibilities to the Regiment and to the community we serve. This case shows that you can run, but you can’t hide forever. Through the Joint Intelligence Unit we are receiving support from our sister services in helping clear up the absentee list. The names on the list represent wasted tax payer money. One’s personal view on conscription is irrelevant; the fact is: long term absentees are a financial burden on every resident and it is our job – especially in our current financial situation – to prevent money being wasted.”
“In addition, it is irresponsible for some young men to snub their lawful duties, while others will take it in stride and do what their country requires of them.
Lt Col Foster-Brown said: “The Regiment is a caring employer with the best interests of our soldiers at heart. We help our soldiers whenever we can and if they have a genuine reason for being unable to serve, they are treated sympathetically. But it’s important they talk to us about it so we can find the best way forward for all concerned. I would urge those who have not completed their legal obligation to the Regiment to get in touch with us as soon as possible, and if you are a friend or relative of a long term absentee, please also encourage them to do so: the longer the absence the greater the crime and those who return voluntarily will have that fact considered in mitigation.”
“For those who may have legitimate reasons for being unable to serve there is a mechanism in place for deferment. The soldier who I saw earlier this week wrote asking for deferment before he absconded; however he didn’t show up for his interview. There is a reasonable chance he would have had his service deferred, but instead he chose to be absent. It gives me no pleasure to punish soldiers, but I will not hesitate to apply the law; it is not fair on those that do carry out their duty if others who don’t are not held to account.”
Maj. Beasley added that, in some cases, soldiers who repeatedly fail to turn up for duty are prosecuted in Magistrate’s Court. And he said, if found guilty, they can face a large fine and imprisonment. He added a criminal record can hamper not only prospects at home, but cause problems with overseas travel. He added that this was not the preferred route of resolving absenteeism, but can be the only option left. Maj. Beasley said: “It’s in everyone’s interests for people with outstanding time to serve in the Regiment to do something about it, rather than just hoping the problem will go away – it won’t.”
Lt Col Foster-Brown added that a security review was underway, which could lead to a change in the current conscription arrangements. But he said: “This will not change the fact individuals have broken the current law and the Regiment will enforce it as it stands. Anyone called to serve must do so or tell us why they can’t. If the reason for not attending is concern over the military aspects of service, then they should rest assured: the vast majority of soldiers within the Regiment find it a hugely rewarding and positive experience which has also helped them in other aspects of their life including civilian employment. The time commitment is also less than it has been in the past too – typically equating to 24 days per year and we offer a wide variety of worthwhile and interesting specialist roles.”
Read More About
Comments (77)
Trackback URL | Comments RSS Feed
Articles that link to this one:
- Regiment Releases Absentee Soldiers Names | Bernews.com | July 3, 2013
The Bermuda Regiment needs to stop this b/s.
Conscription is not the way to go forward and needs to be done away with.
the government could save money by cutting down the regiment lets publish the cost of money it takes to keep the regiment going for what a few parades lets be real here are toy soldiers are not going to be fighting any wars okay stop the b===s
The regiment is like the American Military Reserves not the battle committed ones but no one in America complains about these soldiers because they realize especially after man made & natural disasters what they are there for. We have been lucky not to need the regiment that much but luck is what it is.
Or rather toy soldiers
Or at least cut the time back. Why 3 years!? Is that really a necessity?
There are many who have gone backwards in our society with their lack of discipline. If there were less people on the island with your mindset then there would be more to encourage others not to go AWOL. The regiment has to chase certain GROWN MEN to do their duties just like these certain GROWN MEN are chased by their baby mammas to pay support, by their employers to be on time & do their job, by the banks to pay their loans & the list goes on. These are the ones you sympathize for instead of telling them to get off their lazy backsides & do their one night a week, one weekend a month & two weeks a year. There’s no going forward as these sissified poor excuses for grown men are supported in going backwards.
I agree Tommy Chong.
I agree we should all serve and give back, however to serve for THREE years in the Regiment is really a waste of time and money. Not much is learnt in that third year anyway. Why not allow our young men AND women to serve by giving back by helping the Police, Fire, St. Johns, Red Cross, Prisons, AG and Fish, Aquarium, and perhaps in an area which some day they wish to make a career of. I never understood the BULLY tactics used by the Regiment.
Why is it that we subscribe to this thought that the only way we can give back is by serving in the Regiment? The Regiment is a distraction to most. It has been good for some – I agree, but it IS a distraction for many! How many of us know of someone that decided to just the “Regiment Thing” out of the way with an then go to College. After 3 years of serving, when their friends are coming home, most decide they no long have the desire to go abroad.
My Suggestion:
1) Allow our your to serve – anywhere their is a charitable demand!
2) Three years is too long unless you wish to make a career out of serving in the military. We are trying to save money as a country. here is where we can cut back, with little to no detrimental affect.
3) Make going, and graduating from College, Trade School or University an incentive. If you go and get a career and do something positive, you only need to serve one year!
Anyone called to duty is allowed to substitute Fire or St. Johns for the regiment. I know a few that have done so. The problem is that many of the ones who don’t want to go to the regiment don’t want to do anything else in exchange. Ask someone from St. Johns how long some who do it instead the regiment last before they start skipping & you will get your answer to your question.
BTW Fire & St. Johns expect more time & commitment from their people than the regiment. It’s not really three years in the regiment if you total up the full time expected. There are countries in Europe with real three year drafts where once your in your there for a full three years day in & out with only a few breaks.
Sorry Tommy, but you that isn’t 100% true. You can’t sign up for those services UNTIL the regiment has turned you down first. If you are called by the regiment, there you must go. St. johns is a little different, since you an sign up before 18 I believe. The Fire Department doesn’t even have a volunteer service anymore which is a shame since it was the entry point for many current firemen and even a Chief or two.
You are committed to the Regiment for three years. If they say you have a march, camp , overseas trip , you must go.
you teacher are wrong!
Wrong
You can apply for St Johns or the Reserve police when your drafted to serve your 3 years, but the regiment still has the final say as to whether or not they will defer you to those alternate services, but you wont be accepted by St. Johns or Reserve police until the regiment has released you, So your both correct.
**** bermuda regiment.. dumb s*** like this is why people dont join the regiment .. how are you going to charge him for that this is outright bulls***.. he has bin gone for 7 years give him a break dumb a** regiment
Why because they tried to cheat the system & got caught? They hid from their responsibility for 7 years while investing little to nothing into Bermuda when abroad & the tax payers must take out of pocket for them. When you run away from the regiment you don’t just run away from learning military things you run away from opportunities to learn other life lessons that you can use to serve your community & even your family if that unfortunate time arrises.
exactly…call it what is. As posted already, most who complain about being drafted by the regiment don’t want to do any kind of service at all, so its not just the regiment, if it was st johns drafting ppl, the complaints would be the same.
The regiment a caring employer with the best interest of the soldiers at heart……..hmmmmmmmm bs
The regiment is an institution which conforms black males into employment with the premise of yes masser or yes boss without question.
So what is mandatory service for in countries where the majority is not black. You are a dumb racist and you don’t even know it
But black males aren’t the only ones called. There’s white guys up there too. Not everything is about race!!!
yes there are but they are few
That’s complete nonsense. I’m serving right now I can assure you – the racial makeup of the Regiment very much reflects the racial makeup of the society from which it draws its recruits.
If there is a question of race, you can argue that perhaps the officer corps is a bit white-heavy. But that’s arguably a Bermudian / non-Bermudian issue instead of a race issue, what with the large number of British command appointments we have. Whether fairly or not, the rationale is that there are insufficient numbers of qualified Bermudians to take the senior command posts, especially when set against full time soldiers from the British Army with experience in Iraq and Afghanistan.
But the notion that there are few white people? Nonsense.
Every Bermudian male is called regardless if they are white or black!!!! The problem is that children born here to non-Bermudian parents are not considered Bermudian according to the law, and must “apply” for status when they hit 21 or 25 (I can’t remember). Therefore if they are not considered Bermudian according to our backwards laws, than why should they serve in a country that tells them they are not a part of? Many are therefore not called , or may defer the service. Wouldn’t you? Then, they slip thru the cracks when they get status many years later.
racist as* h*l*. Look and see there are whites in the conscription as well a matter of percentages if you could understand what that means
try it, you might just learn something like Bermuda starts with a capital B and a lot more.
The first word of a sentence should also start with a capital letter. Perhaps you shouldn’t be so quick to judge.
you are quite right,it starts with B for Bull$h!t.
This is such bs. Arnt there alot of other issues we should be addressing.
what was he doing abroad maybe he was in school
if he was in school they wouldn’t fine him genius
If he was in school there are proper procedures that are easily done to get a deferral. I completed my schooling abroad without any problem from the regiment. It was a bit of a pain when I got back to start my carrier & the regiment at the same time but I did what I had to & the officer worked with my employer & me even though by law they didn’t have to. Being an older soldier than many who were straight out of high school I saw some who went against the grain any chance they could. These others who showed lack of discipline were still assisted & pushed as much as possible by the officers to better themselves not pushed aside as society would do. These could have been the ones that cause the issues that need addressing but at present are the ones that hold jobs & support their family not because mommy & daddy taught them to but because the regiment pushed them to be better. Why not just stand outside the regiment on first day of two week camp & see the amount of men who are still holding on to mommy’s skirt & have no clue about the real world. In the regiment mommy’s little darlings learn quick how to use their own gumption & as they say in there, “run don’t walk!”
Sheeple like you make me sick.
The question is, the Regiment should inform the public as to why was he was abroard for an extended period of time.
Not just that he was fined, Regiment where is the honest transparent reporting. As tax payers we should know that also so we can be informed before we make assumptions and agree with your position.
Please shed some more light.
why, you have no entitlement to what business the regiment conducts with an awol soldier, mind your business, that’s between the regiment and him.
They are protecting the privacy of the individual punished.
Do away with the regiment in it’s current form & make it a smaller more efficient full time organization. This way it would better serve Bermuda & offer better value for money compared to it’s current form.
Seems plausible. But why does Bermuda need a MILITARY force? IMHO we don’t.
Hurricane cleanup…check. Marching for parades…check. But neither of those require use of a deadly organization.
And for internal security why don’t we just hire more police officers who can make use of the 365 days a year they won’t be doing riot control…
I agree
(1) More full time police officers is potentially more costly, and (2) police officers don’t get sufficient or appropriate training for internal security situations where there is a breakdown in public order.
The regimental training for internal security is laughable as well. I remember during my time serving & we where told not to put up much of a fight as acting rioters when we where beating the riot squad back. The amount of time spent on that particular side of training is no where enough to truly stand up in actual use.
This again goes back to my suggestion of a full time better trained force rather then a group of part time individuals. Where most don’t want to be there in the first place so getting them to actually put an once of effort over the bare minimum requirement is most times a waste of time. Another thing to think about, if you’re having issues getting individuals to show up to camp during peace times what chance do you think it would be for them to show up during civil unrest?
use the regiment as a bootcamp as an alternative to imprisonment for wayward youth, they can do all the regiment training as well as the community service in an organized and disciplined fashion.
Stfu d.o your heads up your a$$.. your probably a regiment a$$hole yourself.. and i did go to the regiment myself big puppy show full of f&^%$ts and power pressed a$$holes
no little girl i did my time but made the most of it and got something out of it for the rest of my life.You should think with your brain not your mouth
lol! For that comment.
In the words of Gunnery Sergeant Hartman, “Private Cowboy, and you don’t look much like a steer to me, so that kinda narrows it down.”
They don’t have the manpower (or b@lls?) to arrest known gangbangers who have skipped their duty to serve for months/years but can come and find me at work for missing two weekly clusterf#@ks. The regiment is a complete waste of taxpayers money. End conscription. Or conscript females. What’s fair is fair. End it and save millions. Nothing will be missed.
But they do arrest known wanksters thats why when the regiment trucks come around the hoods they scatter. They even have bouncers who will drop a dime on these wanksters when they walk in the club quick for the regiment. Problem is many wanksters don’t have a fixed abode or a job so it’s difficult to chase them down. If the government allowed the RPs to use baton guns on these wanksters when they ran this problem would be solved quick.
@ Tommy Chong,
As a former solider like yourself, I believe the ones who really need the regiment are never called, because the regiment does not want to worst of the worst.
On another note,I done my time, was frustrated at times, but enjoyed the experience and met many friends. I personally think the Regiment has its pro’s and con’s, but overall, the 3 years won’t kill anyone. As the old saying goes, ” What doesn’t kill you only makes you stronger”
P.S. I must admit, I learned some patience, because they were very long winded in the late 90′s & early 2000′s.
“hurry up and wait….”
To everyone saying that conscription should be abolished – I agree. But that’s a completely separate issue to what happened here. There are 100+ LTAs in the regiment – people who just don’t give two s#!ts about their service obligations.
It’s fine to have a position on the appropriateness of the law at present, but until such time as it changes, the law is the law. What the LTAs situation means is that (1) there’s a burden on the rest of us law-abiding soldiers, since time and resources have to go to dealing with this issue, (2) the intake each year has to be larger than it needs to be in order to keep up the appropriate level of manpower, which means that chances of any young man turning 18 being drafted is higher than it needs to be, and (3) it’s just plainly unfair.
Against conscription and the Regiment? Then by all means, advocate for change. But don’t make this man out to be some kind of martyr.
What a joke! It reinforces the need to abolish conscription.
Let it go Regiment. let it go. Much more pressing things out there than punishing absentee soldiers.
Well done!!!!!! If I have to do what makes that c#%t special, people b!tching what if he was away in school. The he should have gotten exempet like all the other before him and after him in that case. if that dumb a$$ did his time and gotten out then 7 years later we will not have been reading about this. People need to stop blaming and making excuses, do what you got to do and be done with it. Such is life.
“…represent wasted taxpayer money!” Do you mean like the wages of the person checking the list for airport arrivals, the RP’s sent to drive to the airport and wait for the ‘absentee’, only to arrest the ‘absentee’ and drive them to Warwick Camp, to pay for a trial, to pay for an Expat to cast judgement, and then to pay for someone to write this press release and or give this interview, do you mean that wasted taxpayer money?
In the **Real World** this soldier would be in prison for being AWOL for 7 yrs!! But we all know that BDA is another world!! Quite a “joke” really!!
I am a firm believer in the regiment but I will say that this story sucks, how on earth does a man get arrested after being away for seven years.
regardless if this man was in another jurisdiction legally or not, the fact that he has been out of here for seven years and come home and slapped with a hefty fine is just ridiculous.
There was a time that if you got into trouble and stayed clear of the law for seven years those charges cannot be bought against you, providing it was not murder or attempted murder. Just like another antiquated law where if you owe a debt and the claim is not bought before the court within a seven year period, then that debt is also nil and void.
I was not aware that the antiquated law for something of this nature was changed and if it has been that please someone enlighten me. The man has been out of here for seven years and this is the regiment we are talking about, give us a break and pick up these sorry looser that are a menace to society.
Duane,
You’re referring to a Statute of Limitations, though I’m not sure if there is one for this type of offence in Bermuda. Nevertheless, it’s not that he committed one offence when he skipped a day 7 years ago; his offence would have been recommitted every single day he didn’t show up in the interim, so in this case such a Statue would not be relevant.
Now what I can’t understand is this: it is in no way, shape or form an offence to live off island for any reason. While living off island, you are fully exempt from serving in regiment, no questions asked, no questions relevant, full stop. My guess is that he actually skipped for a few years while living on island, before he went off island.
I live foreign 6 yrs. I’m married n I didn’t finish regiment. I go back n get fined on some dum ish like this they gon see a crazy black in action. But the courts dine with the rapists right?
They can’t stop you from leaving Bermuda for an extended period of time provided you provide proof that you will not be living full-time in Bermuda (ie. University acceptance or letter from employer). You will then be posted to Holding Company. However if you don’t follow these procedures and simply up and leave it will be seen as an offense.
as stated there procedures for such cases, if he was moving off island after having been drafted, he needed to notify the regiment so that he could be deferred. Since he did not and just left, he is considered absent. When you are drafted but you plan to attend school abroad, you have to send a letter to the regiment with proof of your acceptance to school abroad and you would be deferred as long as your in school, but a letter is required every year.
The comments by this guy Beasley are extremely threatening and are the kind of words to incite a riot. If his only justification for arresting and fining male for not attending is that it is the law, let me remind him that slavery (on the cotton fields) was once law, based on his comments he’d justify that too…..Mr. Beaseley, please learn how to communicate your message better going forward and also, OBA is this your version of ending conscription?
I think that slavery bit is just your your interpretation and slightly reflects your annoyance at the system (fair everyone has opinions). He has communicated his message in the most straightforward way. The law is the law (whether it changes in the future is irrelevant at the moment). The regiment guys are just doing their job, abiding by the current law and following up on someone who may not have properly followed the absence protocol. I think the whole story is based on the law, so his law justification fits, don’t you think? Just being fair.
Look up the meaning of slavery and then if you still don’t get it, then it may just be your intellectual dishonest. Following the law is not always a good thing, let me know if you’d like examples.
And if it does incite a riot, (which is a complete joke), the regiment will be there to stop the riot. Lucky eh?
You’re a complete joke, the regiment there to stop a riot? now that’s a joke
Totally unnecessary.
How about we use this “Joint Intelligence Unit” to catch people who are actually doing bad things.. Like I don’t know, smuggling weapons and drugs in and out of the country.. Instead of trying to catch people not fulfilling regiment duty.
Y’all can complain about the absurdity of conscription all you want, but it is the mans own fault. He’s the one that signed up and committed himself to conscription. If he didn’t want to do it, he should have never gone to begin with. Here’s a little secret…if you ignore every letter and call-up the Regiment sends you, they will forget about you, but go once and they have you by the short and curly’s until you’ve completed your sworn duty.
The only waste of money here is the regiment itself.
yes indeed with all those Toyota trucks from GIBBONS COMPANY HMMM I wonder what they cost
You slavemasters! May curses befall you!
The Grand Architect is wroth!
My Advice is that no one cooperate with these people. They obviously have so little to do they spend most of their time looking for people who don’t want to go. So we the taxpayer pay people to look for people who don’t want to go in the first place. – Stupid
jredmond you are incorrect. That loophole was amended in 2000.
The Regiment, in it’s current form, is a dinasaur. Mandatory community service in ones younger years is a good thing. At 18 you take your pick of organization to serve. If not the Regiment or a service will be picked for you.
In case you folks didn’t know it, there is a new sheriff in town(Lt.Col Foster-Brown,and a new deputy(Major Beasley)
Get over it!
Spot on Rocky.
Not everyone is on the Lambe now.
Bout time someone had some ‘Ball-istics’
Should have locked him up!
Isn’t it strange that the other story on Bernews talks about naming and shaming those soldiers who are AWOL, yet the soldier in this case is not named.
Let us not think that the sheriff and his deputy are trying something new. They are not. All previous Commanding Officer (all BERMUDIAN) have tried the same exercise to varying degrees of success. Be that as it may the quicker the OBA lives up to its election rheteroic the better. The people the regiment should target are not the 30 year olds. Trust me.