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Ex-prison officer gets bail on ganja trafficking charge
(Kaieteur News) – One of two former prison officers who were remanded for possession of more than 340 pounds of cannabis was granted $500,000 bail on Thursday.
The accused, Sarafina Pitt Cheddy and Shamay Bryan, both former officers of the Guyana Prison Service (GPS) and residents of Smythfield, New Amsterdam, were arrested on January 24 after police discovered 345.8 pounds of cannabis in a vehicle during a stop-and-search operation at about 07:20 hrs along the No. 10 Public Road, West Coast Berbice (WCB).
The two women were remanded to prison on January 27 when they appeared before Magistrate Michelle Matthias at the Blairmont Magistrate’s Court. They were formally charged with possession of narcotics for the purpose of trafficking. Both pleaded not guilty. Police stated that the discovery was part of coordinated operations aimed at clamping down on drug trafficking.
Granted bail; Shamay Bryan (right) and further remanded; Sarafina Cheddy (left)
During their second court appearance on Thursday, defense attorney Bernard Da Silva applied for bail for both women. The matter was heard before Magistrate Taunna Hardy at the Fort Wellington Magistrate’s Court. Bryan was granted bail in the sum of $500,000 on the condition that she lodge her travel documents and report to the nearest police station every other Friday.
However, bail was refused for Cheddy on the grounds that she allegedly committed a similar offence while previously on bail. During the initial court appearance, police disclosed that Cheddy is no stranger to drug-related charges. In 2022, while serving as an officer at the New Amsterdam Prison, she was charged after being found with 500 grams of cannabis. That matter is still pending before the court. Da Silva told the court that the vehicle in which the narcotics were found was not registered to either of the accused.
The matter has been adjourned to March 26, 2026, for report and further disclosure. According to police reports, during the operation officers searched the vehicle and discovered several brown salt bags and black garbage bags in the trunk. The bags contained bulky parcels wrapped in transparent plastic with leaves, seeds, and stems suspected to be cannabis. The narcotics were weighed in the presence of the accused at the Fort Wellington Police Station and amounted to 345.8 pounds. The drugs were subsequently lodged as evidence.
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