Jasmine Hartin, Daughter-in-Law of British Billionaire Michael Ashcroft, Walks Past Shrine of Belize Cop She Fatally Shot After Bail Visit
Jasmine Hartin, the daughter-in-law of British billionaire Lord Michael Ashcroft, was seen strolling past a memorial site of the Belize cop she is accused of killing after a bail visit to a police station, a report said.
According to The Sun, the 32-year-old socialite was walking with an armed security guard that carried a pistol as she checked in at the San Ignacio prison as part of her bail conditions.
Jasmine Hartin had been freed after posting a $15,000 bail on Wednesday, June 9. She had claimed that she accidentally shot Superintendent Henry Jemmott when practicing reloading his gun while drinking.
One of her bail conditions requires Hartin to surrender her travel documents, including her passport and ID. Judge Herber Lord also ruled that Hartin should not leave Belize until her trial has concluded, the Independent reported.
Belizean authorities said that Hartin posed as a "serious flight risk." As a foreign national accused of a crime, she would likely leave the country to escape justice. The Belize cop's family was also in attendance when the ruling was released.
Jasmine Hartin was initially denied bail. The socialite is facing five years in jail for manslaughter by negligence.
RELATED ARTICLE: Jasmine Hartin, Daughter-in-Law of British Billionaire Lord Michael Ashcroft, Set To Be Charged Over the Death of Belize Cop
Belize Cop's Accidental Shooting
Detectives said that Jasmine Hartin had attended a party last month in Ambergris Caye and went for a walk with Henry Jemmott. The two sat together on a pier.
Henry Jemmott reportedly showed off to her his Glock service pistol, and it accidentally went off when she passed it back to him, The Guardian reported.
Hartin said that she had been giving the Belize cop a massage. Her defense lawyer Godfrey Smith noted that the daughter-in-law of British billionaire Lord Michael Ashcroft had not tried to flee the scene nor dispose of the weapon when the accident took place.
Hartin screamed for help, alerting some nearby security guards. Hartin, who is married to Lord Michael Ashcroft's son Andrew, reportedly pleaded with people arriving at the scene to help her find her friend, Daily Mail reported.
Jasmine Hartin and Henry Jemmott had been reportedly friends for years, from 2014 to 2019. The Belize cop would dine with Hartin occasionally where he was stationed in San Pedro, but the two had seen less of each other after his transfer to the town of San Ignacio on the mainland.
The daughter-in-law of British billionaire Lord Michael Ashcroft said she struggled to eject the magazine clip, but it was stuck, and the gun suddenly went off. She added that she had no idea that it still had a bullet in the chamber.
One person reportedly picked up the gun while Jasmine Hartin was in a state of shock. The socialite was found distraught and covered in blood.
Jasmine Hartin's In-Laws Reactions
One source said that the Ashcroft family had been left devastated by the incident, saying that Lord Michael Ashcroft had devoted his life to Belize. Henry Jemmott has five kids, two teenagers and three young ones from his current partner.
Lord Michael Ashcroft is known to be the top donor to the United Kingdom Conservative Party. The British billionaire is a former deputy chairman of the Conservative Party. His fortune comes from buying and selling several companies.
He is also a major investor in Belize and served as the Belizean Ambassador to the United Nations from 1998 to 2000.
Reports said that the alternative punishment for manslaughter by negligence in Belize could be a fine of about $10,000 in U.S. dollars.
WATCH: Jasmine Hartin Reportedly Confessed to Shooting After Drug Charge Threat - From New York Post
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