Barbadian Cricketer Fined for Assaulting Taxi Driver at Local Resort

By Latrishka Thomas

A young West Indies Academy cricketer has been fined after admitting to assaulting a taxi driver at a resort here in Antigua.

Barbadian batsman Shaqkere Parris, 22, appeared before Chief Magistrate Ngaio Emanuel on Thursday, with his attorney, Arthur Thomas Jr, and entered a guilty plea to a single charge of battery.

The incident occurred after Parris, who recently toured Sri Lanka with the West Indies Academy squad, attempted to board a taxi at the resort. The driver reportedly refused to take him as a passenger following a heated exchange over an earlier incident involving a female colleague. Parris allegedly pushed and punched the driver after the driver removed his luggage from the vehicle.

Magistrate Emanuel ordered Parris to pay a $1,500 fine within seven days, in default of which he will serve 30 days in prison. He was also ordered to pay $500 in compensation to the victim within seven days, in default of which he will serve seven days in prison. The maximum penalty for the offence is a $5,000 fine or 12 months’ imprisonment.

The court warned Parris that he needs to control his temper in every circumstance.

In court, Parris apologized to the victim. The victim had requested that the apology be made public, and the court indicated it was satisfied with the oral apology delivered in open court.

West Indies cricketer Jamal Smith, who is also from Barbados, told the court that Parris is generally a good young man who has excelled despite past trauma.

 Thomas told the court his client was prepared to pay the fine immediately.