Duo caught with $744 600 worth of cannabis sentenced to prison 

- by Barbados Today May 31, 2023

Two Tobagonians who trafficked $744 600 worth of marijuana in Barbados’ territorial waters will each spend over two more years behind bars here.

As of Tuesday, Anton James has 1 182 more days, or around three years, left to serve at Dodds Prison, while Kyrsten Trim has just over two years, or 1 002 days.

Justice Randall Worrell handed down the sentences on the duo in the No. 2 Supreme Court. The jail time is the remainder of a 12-year starting sentence imposed for trafficking 193.65 kilograms or 426.92 pounds of cannabis on February 15, 2021. James and Trim were convicted, reprimanded, and discharged on the offenses of possession and importation of the illicit drug.

“This is a matter that can only be dealt with by way of a custodial sentence. It is quite clear [given] the excessive amount of drugs,” Justice Worrell told the convicted men. “I don’t think a starting point of 12 years is unreasonable given the quantity.”

From the 12 years, a deduction of three years was given for mitigating factors and another three years for their guilty pleas, leaving them with six years, or 2 190 days, left to serve.

They were also credited with 828 days which is the time they had already spent on remand at Dodds. That left 1 362 days, from which another 180 days were deducted, given the two-year delay which it took for the matter to be adjudicated.

Given that James admitted he was the mastermind of the enterprise, he will spend the next 1 182 days in jail.

Trim, meanwhile, was given a further deduction of 180 days from his 1 182 days as he is said to have played a more subordinate role.

Both men were told to participate in vocational and educational programs available at the prison.

Justice Worrell said the court had looked at imposing fines on the Tobagonians but there was nothing to indicate they could pay.

According to the facts of the case read to the court by Acting Senior State Counsel Rudolph Burnett, officers from the Drug Squad and the Coast Guard ventured out to.

The Narcotics Control Commission (NACOC), has revealed the seizure of 54 slabs of dried leaves suspected to be cannabis worth $127,000 at the Kotoka International Airport cargo terminal.

The cannabis weighing about 12.67KG was intercepted on Wednesday, May 23.

The consignment was bound for the United Kingdom when the Commission detected it in KIA’s scanning room during routine duties.

In a statement signed by NACOC’s Public Affairs and International Relations Department, it indicated that “a field test conducted on the substances proved positive for cannabis.”

The Commission says it has taken custody of the seized consignment, adding that investigations are ongoing to apprehend the perpetrators.

“The Commission would like to use this medium to remind the general public that the possession and transportation of illicit drugs without lawful authorization is illegal and punishable under sections 40 (1) and 41 (1) of Act 1019 of the Narcotics Control Commission Act 2020. “

NACOC assured the general public that it is committed to collaborating with all relevant institutions in minimising the drug trafficking threat to the country.

Source:myjoyonline.com

Parris is wanted for conspiracy to supply Class A drugs. Parris is alleged to be a customer of Asim Naveed’s OCG, buying cocaine from them and selling it on within Cardiff. Parris is said to have used an Encro phone to strike deals with the OCG including once buying seven kilos of cocaine for £89,000.

 Parris has gold upper teeth.

Foster is alleged to have murdered David 'Noddy' Rice at the Marsden Bay Car Park, South Shields on 24th May 2006.

Foster is also wanted for two offences of conspiring to supply controlled drugs and also for the theft of a diamond ring.

Foster has links to the Canary Islands and Majorca. He is also known to use the alias Shaun Michael Wilkinson.

Alleged to be a regional distributor of drugs across the southwest of England, buying and selling drugs and managing other distributors who operated under his instruction using the EncroChat encrypted communications network. He is accused of conspiracy to supply cocaine and ketamine, money laundering, and conspiracy to acquire a firearm.

Male has a number of distinctive tattoos including a skull on his adams apple and a full sleeve on his left arm with a family tree. ‘Love’ is tattooed on his left hand along with a swallow and he has three stars tattooed on his left wrist. He also has a full tribal sleeve tattoo on his right arm going onto his chest with an angel on his back and

Alleged to be a regional distributor of drugs across the southwest of England, buying and selling drugs and managing other distributors who operated under his instruction using the EncroChat encrypted communications network. He is accused of conspiracy to supply cocaine and ketamine, money laundering, and conspiracy to acquire a firearm.

Male has a number of distinctive tattoos including a skull on his adams apple and a full sleeve on his left arm with a family tree. ‘Love’ is tattooed on his left hand along with a swallow and he has three stars tattooed on his left wrist. He also has a full tribal sleeve tattoo on his right arm going onto his chest with an angel on his back and

Personnel of the Southern Division’s Criminal Investigations Department of the Barbados Police Service, arrested and formally charged four people for several offences, including large drug busts.

They are 36-year-old Tito Mardonna Oniel Barrow, 25-year-old Nicholas Johnathan Gibson, 50-year-old Harvey Joseph Paul Merritt and 42-year-old Francis Arneau.

1. £1.6m drug dealer who used Kia Sportage to supply ketamine jailed

A BRIT teenager whose body was found dumped in a forest was killed by a drug dealer, police have said.

The wallet and phone of Woramet Ben Taota, 16, were also found in the forest in Thailand and police have now arrested 44-year-old Chaiwat Boongarin.

He has claimed Ben and his girlfriend Suraphltchaya Khamsa, 16, were allegedly caught up in his drug dealing activities.

Chaiwat, who police say has previous convictions for sex crimes, allegedly lured Ben to a forest and then battered him to death before Suraphltchaya fled and has not been seen since.

Ben, who has a British father and Thai mother, was found dead on May 7 with a deep wound on his head and cuts across his face.

Haunting footage shows the final sighting of Ben before he was found dead in a forest in ThailandOfficers found Ben's girlfriend Yam, 16, and now still searching for the second girl he was romantically involved with.

Chaiwat is now being remanded in custody in the Mae Tha district

Officers are expected to take him on a crime reconstruction later today.

Police Major General Mongkol Sampawapol, commander of Lampang Provincial Police, said the alleged killer and Woramet were involved in a dispute over drugs.

Police officers from the Mae Tha district said they received a report on Sunday morning that the teenager, known to friends as Ben, had been found dead in a grove in the Ban Than district.

Officers found in his black shoulder bag a smartphone charger and a red wallet containing his ID card and bank card.

His smartphone and cash were missing, with police suggesting he could have been robbed for the gadgets and money.

Police believe Ben was killed elsewhere and dumped in the woods, as there were no signs of struggle where his remains were found.

They said he had head injuries consistent with severe trauma.

They began searching for Ben's girlfriend along with the female he was involved with before later arresting Chaiwat at his nearby home.

Police said the suspect had been released from prison around eight months ago following previous convictions for sex crimes.

They claimed that Chaiwat was seen riding his black Honda Wave motorcycle without a license plate on May 6 at around 9pm.

Officers say it was parked it at his relative's house with a young woman they believe is Ben's girlfriend, Suraphltchay

The motorcycle was found by officers this morning, May 9, behind a cow shed close to the home.

Police Major General Mongkol Sampawapol said: “The suspect told his relative that he wanted to leave his motorcycle at their house.

“He told them that he was looking for a rental house for his mistress. He then left the house with another motorcycle and returned the next morning.

“After that, he rode the black Honda Wave and left it near the hut before officers found it on May 9.

“We are still searching for the young woman and believe that she is still safe.”

Officers interviewed Ben's mother, Ooy Taota, who is understood to be separated from Ben's British father, a businessman specialising in thatched roofs who now lives back in the United Kingdom.

Ooy told police that her son had said goodbye to her on Saturday evening and said he was 'going to work with friends' but he did not give any more details to her.

She was pictured today breaking down in tears as she visited the spot where Ben was found dead.

The Ghana Immigration Service (GIS) has intercepted 896 slabs of suspected Indian hemp at Cave, a border town in the Nyive sector.

The parcels, which were in rectangular shapes, were found in sacks with the inscription “70”.

Superintendent Courage Amegbe, the Commander of the Operation Calm Life Patrol Team in the Nyive Sector, disclosed that the patrol team, on night duty along an unapproved route, intercepted the goods at about 2230 hours on Friday, May 5.

According to Superintendent Amegbe, the officers found the sacks in the bush at an unapproved route along Shia and Nyive border, upon reaching Cave.

He added that the 12 sacks of the commodity were packed and transported to the main border post at Nyive.

To ensure proper handling of the intercepted consignment, a team of Narcotics Control Commission officials from Ho were brought to the border post to take charge of the consignment.

Superintendent Amegbe, while admonishing the public to desist from the use and trade in illicit goods, called on the citizenry to provide informations which will lead to the arrest of such recalcitrant members of society.

He said, “We will continue to patrol the borders to prevent any illegal activities, and we urge the public to support us with information to fight the menace.”

Officers stopped a Deliveroo moped riding the wrong way down one-way street.

Checks revealed the rider had a revoked license and no insurance for business use.

The rider then discarded a bag before attempting to run off.

The rider was then detained and 25 bags of cannabis were recovered along with dealer cards, weighing scales, and quantity of empty snap bags.

Arrested for Possession with intent to supply Class B + No insurance + Not in accordance

Barbados has recorded its first case of methamphetamine (meth) use, and the public is being warned to avoid the drug at all costs, as it poses a threat to health and could lead to death.

Noting that the drug’s presence on the island was confirmed by (FSC), Minister of Home Affairs and Information, Wilfred Abrahams, described meth on the island as a “serious situation” that is of great concern to the authorities.

This was disclosed during a press briefing at the Ministry’s Wildey, St. Michael conference room last Friday.  Mr. Abrahams was joined by Director of FSC, Cheryl Corbin; Senior Registrar at the Psychiatric Hospital, Dr. Ronald Chase, and Senior Superintendent of Police in The Barbados Police Service (BPS), Anthony Warner.

“Meth is a powerful, highly addictive stimulant that affects the central nervous system.  It takes the form of a white odourless, bitter-tasting crystalline powder that easily dissolves in water or in alcohol.  Meth is extremely harmful,” the Minister said, reiterating that it was also illegal.

He stated that meth acts like a stimulant, and even in small doses, could increase wakefulness, physical activity, and can decreased appetite.  In addition, the drug is also known to cause cardiovascular problems, including rapid heart rate, irregular heartbeat, and increased blood pressure.

It can also lead to hypothermia (elevated body temperature), convulsions, and violent behaviour. In cases of an overdose, if not treated immediately, persons are likely to die.

However, Minister Abrahams pointed out that meth use and its misuse went beyond the devastating effects on individual health, as it also impacted poor communities, causing new waves of crime, unemployment, child neglect or abuse, and other social problems.

In that regard, he called on all Barbadians, the private sector and civil society, to join with Government in tackling the problem.

Meanwhile, Senior Superintendent Warner said while there were “some challenges with border security”, The BPS was doing its best to identify the sources, routes, and trends that people would employ to get the drugs into the country.

He noted that as recently as March 15, a quantity of meth was intercepted in San Juan en route from Canada to Barbados. Senior Superintendent Warner explained that  Barbados would be seen as a transshipment point to move drugs from the source country to the intended country, and in the process, some may be left here.

However, he gave the assurance that The BPS would continue to build on partnerships established at the international level to fight the illegal activity.

At the same time, the lawman called on the media to play a role in educating the population about the illegal activity.  He also urged the public to come forward and share information with the police.

“Any information, regardless of how small or insignificant you might think that information is, it might be the one piece that we need to fit into a bigger picture to solve the problem that we have,” the Senior Superintendent said.

The Regional Security System (RSS), with support from its Air Wing, seized 918 kg of cocaine and 2071.4 lbs of marijuana in 2022. 

This was disclosed by Executive Director of the RSS, Commodore Errington Shurland, who was sharing some of the achievements of the organization during his opening remarks at the RSS’ Council of Ministers meeting, at the Radisson Beach Resort in Grenada on Wednesday. 

Commodore Shurland also revealed that through guidance to RSS Member States, there were cash seizures valued at XCD $4.5 million (Eastern Caribbean Dollars), restraints valued at XCD $8.7 million, confiscations valued at XCD $227,750 and cash forfeitures valued at XCD $2.4 million, last year. 

The RSS head pointed out that these accomplishments could not only be attributed to the RSS Headquarters but were a result of the organization’s collaboration with its strategic partners. 

He further added that the region was vulnerable to a number of other threats including the nefarious use of technology and artificial intelligence, as well as the possibility of serious climatic events which could result in mass migration and an economy sustained by transnational criminal organizations. 

The executive director noted that these foreseeable events suggest that there is a need to examine how civil society and other players in the international system can work in tandem with traditional law enforcement to address security concerns. 

“The inclusion of non-traditional actors in the licit network’s counter-strategy, and the emergence of environmental and cyber threats would therefore underpin the need for a network governance model to provide the framework through which this collaboration will take place,” he outlined. 

Commodore Shurland also alluded to the increase in gun violence which has been crippling some of the Member States and stressed the need for “hard and soft responses” to this crisis. 

“Soft through constant positive messaging to our young people with the aid of social development programs that consistently targets troubled youth, and programs that addresses issues related to recidivism. The hard responses require the commitment to put in place the necessary infrastructure to secure our borders and prevent the guns from entering our space as well as to treat to issues of corruption,” he explained.

barbados.loopnews.com

Two suspects, believed to be part of a drug syndicate, were arrested on Saturday, 29 April 2023 for dealing in drugs at the University of Limpopo in Mankweng.

Police discovered 26 balls of Heroin concealed inside the motor vehicle with an estimated street value of R50 000-00.