Reuben Forde pleads guilty to illegal gun and ammunition possession, remanded to prison until November 17

The Royal Police Force of Antigua and Barbuda has confirmed that local resident Reuben Forde has been ordered to remain in custody at His Majesty’s Prison, following an admission of guilt on dual firearm and ammunition-related charges at the All Saints Magistrate’s Court. The official public notice, released by the force’s Office of Strategic Communications on Wednesday, November 11, 2026, outlines the full sequence of events that led to the court ruling. The chain of incidents first unfolded on Friday, November 6, 2026, when members of the Criminal Investigations Department’s specialized Task Force launched a targeted patrol operation in the Ottos residential neighborhood. At roughly 9 a.m. that morning, uniformed officers pulled over a white Lexus sedan operated by Forde for a routine compliance check, which escalated to a full search of the vehicle. During the inspection, law enforcement officials uncovered an unregistered Taurus G3 9mm pistol, alongside a loaded magazine holding exactly ten 9mm caliber ammunition rounds. Forde was immediately taken into custody on suspicion of unlawful weapons possession, and transported to the main St. John’s Police Station for formal processing, booking, and evidence documentation. Two days later, on Monday November 9, Forde was brought before Chief Magistrate Ngaio Emanuel for his scheduled arraignment, where he was formally served with two separate criminal counts: unauthorized possession of a prohibited firearm, and unauthorized possession of restricted ammunition. Rather than entering a not guilty plea and proceeding to a full trial, Forde admitted full responsibility for both offences, a plea that was formally accepted by the prosecuting legal team. As no presentence background reports have yet been compiled for the court’s review, Chief Magistrate Emanuel ordered that Forde be remanded in prison custody, with his next scheduled court appearance set for November 17, 2026, at which point the proceedings will advance to the sentencing phase.