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UPS drug bust defendants remanded

Nov 22, 2008 News

– Jamaican national in lineup

 

Despite relentless arguments by defence lawyers Vic Puran and Glenn Hanoman, Magistrate Hazel Octive-Hamilton remanded two women in connection with the drug busts at the UPS postal service and at the Cheddi Jagan International Airport on Wednesday.

The two women were identified as Oma Bissan, aka Christen Bobb, of 55 Cross Street, Werk-en-Rust, and Jamaican national Jacklyn-Ann Simons.

It is alleged that the two, on November 17, at Camp Street, had in their possession 599 grams of cocaine for the sole purpose of trafficking.

A further charge stated that Bissan, on the said day, at Camp and New Market Streets, had in her possession 618 grams of cocaine for the purpose of exportation. The two pleaded not guilty.

Attorney-at-law Glen Hanoman, in a bid to secure bail for Bissan, told the court that Bissan is a mother of a two-month-old baby. He further told the court that the “child is totally dependent” on the mother, since the child is still “breast feeding.”

Hanoman said that it is evident that it is a “posting offence,” and the location mentioned in the charge is at UPS postal services. He added that the defendant was charged under the wrong section of the Narcotics Act.

The presiding magistrate then interjected and told Mr. Hanoman that the defendant can be charged under that section of the Narcotics Act. The lawyer added that his submissions are that his client should have being charged for the eminently bailable offence of trying to “post” the cocaine.

Attorney-at-law Vic Puran, who represented Simons, said that the prosecution is still trying to rectify the amount of “cocaine” which was found, to presume if she was indeed trafficking in narcotics.

He added that the cocaine has not yet being extracted from the solution, and therefore the prosecution cannot really determine the “true weight”.

Puran further told the court that the defendant is charged under Section Five of the Narcotics Act, which he stated is the Act that is being sought out in Parliament. He added that Parliament is hinting at making the offence a bailable offence.

He further said that the court should grant bail, since the court is not in the position to give his client an early trial.

However, special prosecutor for the Customs Anti Narcotics Unit, Oswald Massiah, objected to bail on the grounds that the special reasons which were outlined by the lawyers “do not apply to the case”.

The prosecutor said that both Hanoman and Puran had raised the issue of “posting” against that of “trafficking,” which is a non-issue to the case. Massiah said that as the case progresses, the court would see evidence that the two defendants are known to each other.

The prosecutor said that Bissan’s baby was fathered by the other defendant’s brother; he added that the said defendant once resided in the USA.

The prosecutor also disclosed to the open court that Simons is a Jamaican national who now resides in Canada. The two accused were remanded and are expected to make their next court appearance on April 6, 2009.

Drug agents had swooped down on Bissan as she was attempting to post a packet of cocaine by way of the UPS.

On the said day, CANU agents at the airport came across a package with similar contents destined for Canada. The sender was listed as a “Christine” from Georgetown. When the contents were tested, it was found that the items were all laced with cocaine.

An investigation was launched, and it was while the agents were questioning a staffer that a woman turned up with a similar package. Another test was done on the contents and it showed that the contents were laced with cocaine. The woman was promptly taken into custody.

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