A man found with a loaded gun hidden under his mattress was sentenced to serve 12 years behind bars.

Wahhaj Shakir, 22, pleaded guilty three months ago to possessing a firearm, four rounds of ammunition and a knife in an incident last July.

Delivering his sentence, Puisne Judge Alan Richards said he was “troubled” by images and videos found on Shakir’s phone showing him posing with the firearm.

“At worst that was a declaration that you were ready to do something with the weapon. At best it was an attempt to glamorise this deadly object,” he said.

“There must be a reason why you thought to send shirtless photos of yourself posing with a gun in your hand or inside your waistband. You must have thought that was something others would want to see and, sadly, you were probably right about that.

“As a society, we must do better.”

Mr Richards said unlawful firearms have sent far too many young Bermudians to their graves and should not be glamorised or portrayed as “cool or sexy”.

“That is why the legislature has seen fit to enact mandatory minimum sentences and that is why, in all but exceptional circumstances, this court will respect them,” he said.

The court previously heard that Shakir was stopped by officers on Middle Road in Southampton shortly before midnight on July 18, 2024 and noticed that he smelt of cannabis.

Shakir told officers that he had “about three grams” of cannabis on him and a search revealed plant material and a white powder, which the defendant said was “like molly”.

He was arrested and, during a further search at Hamilton Police Station, officers found a knife with a four-inch blade in his shoe.

Officers subsequently launched a search of Shakir’s home in Paget, where they discovered a black pouch under his mattress that contained a semiautomatic 9mm Smith and Wesson handgun and four live rounds.

Shakir initially denied any knowledge of the weapon and suggested someone else may have stashed it there, but a search of his phone revealed Snapchat pictures and videos of the defendant with the weapon, along with messages that appeared to reference the gun.

He subsequently pleaded guilty to all three offences.

Prosecutors called for Shakir to be sentenced to 12 years, the mandatory minimum, given his guilty plea and lack of previous convictions.

Victoria Greening, counsel for Shakir, urged the court to deliver a ten-year sentence, arguing that it would be disproportionate for him to be given the same sentence as more serious firearm cases.

Mr Justice Richards said that the court should go below the mandatory minimum only in exceptional cases and a guilty plea would not be enough to bring the case into that category.

He added that Shakir’s decision to plead guilty only after the Snapchat materials were found on his phone did not demonstrate “a particular keenness to own up”.

“You knew those videos existed because you made them, but you were obviously hoping that they would not be found and that, in the absence of any forensic evidence, a jury might doubt your guilt and acquit you,” Mr Justice Richards said.

In the circumstances, he said that while Shakir was entitled to a discount, it should not be the “full” 30 per cent discount allowed for an early guilty plea.

The judge told Shakir that his poor choices had put him behind bars, but he believed the defendant was genuinely remorseful for what his actions had done to his family.

“I believe that you do respect your mother and I believe that you are genuinely sorry for having let her down,” Mr Justice Richards said. “It pains me that what I must do to you will hurt her and other members of your family, but the responsibility for that is ultimately, as I think you know, yours.

“My hope for you is that this indictment has saved your life and not ended it. If that gun had never been found, you may have continued on a path that may have led you to commit more serious crimes or it may have led you to a violent and untimely death.

“When you are released at the end of these sentences, please make different choices, if not for your own sake then for the sake of those who care about you.”

Mr Justice Richards sentenced Shakir to 12 years behind bars for the firearm and the ammunition.

He further sentenced the defendant to six months in prison for the knife offence, ordering that period to run concurrent to the other sentences, resulting in an overall sentence of 12 years.

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