KINGSTON, Jamaica – Wholesaler and liquor store owner Michael Glenford, the suspect the police said was responsible for making a bomb threat against the Spanish Town Court House last week, appeared in the Kingston and St Andrew Parish Court on Tuesday, November 14, 2023, to face charges of inciting public mischief.
During the proceedings, the Crown disclosed that law enforcement authorities linked the phone number used to make the bomb threat to Glenford.
But, Glenford’s attorney rubbished the allegation and said: “There is nothing to show that Mr Glenford is connected.”
Furthermore, Glenford’s attorney revealed that on the day of the incident, his client was at the courthouse for a civil matter against someone who owed him “partner money.”
During his bail application, the lawyer highlighted Glenford’s clean slate–stating that his client had no prior run-ins with the law.
“He has never been in trouble. He went to the courthouse for a civil matter that would have benefited him, hopefully,” the attorney said.
Attorney for the accused
Still, despite labeling the recent bomb threats across the island as a “waste of resources,” the attorney did not have his way. Presiding judge Lori-Ann Cole-Montague had Glenford remanded until Thursday, November 16, 2023, when the accused returns to court.
Last Friday, November 10, Deputy Commissioner of Police Fitz Bailey confirmed that 71 institutions received bomb threats between Thursday, November 9, and Friday, November 10. A hospital and a court building were among the targets on Friday.
All other targets were educational institutions, including Denbigh and Lennon High in Clarendon, Old Harbour and Greater Portmore High in St Catherine, and William Knibb Memorial Trelawny.
Additionally, on Tuesday morning, November 14, 2023, Meadowbrook High School issued a release advising the parents and guardians to pick up their children because they had received “threats to the safety of the school.”
The judge adjourned the case until Thursday.