BASSETERRE, St. Kitts – TWO inmates of Her Majesty’s Prison (HMP) on Cayon Street, Basseterre were last week caught with a quantity of cannabis sativa following a search by members of the Royal St. Christopher and Nevis Police Force.
The two inmates, Devon Wattley of St. Paul’s and Michael Boatswain, were charged with possession of cannabis.
According to Police Press and Public Information Officer Sergeant Stephen Hector, Wattley, who was a patient at the Joseph N France General Hospital, was discharged on Thursday (June 7) and was returning to prison when members of the Anti-Narcotics Unit conducted a search of his person.
Hector said the search revealed the find of a quantity of cannabis sativa hidden within two sticks of Right Guard Roll-On Anti-Perspirants and that Wattley was charged with possession of cannabis.
Wattley is currently serving a 15-year sentence for robbery and assault. However, no information was gained on the time Boatswain has to serve in prison.
He also said that on the same day, the officers conducted a search of other inmates and found a quantity of the illegal drug in Boatswain’s back pocket.
He too was charged with possession of cannabis.
On August 25, last, SKNVibes learnt that a search operation conducted at HMP revealed the find of a quantity of restricted items hidden in prisoners’ cells.
The operation was jointly conducted by members of the Special Services Unit and the St. Kitts-Nevis Defence Force, who, during the detailed search, allegedly found a Laptop, a quantity of controlled drugs, improvised weapons and a number of cellular phones including BlackBerries.
In an effort to authenticate the find, this media house had contacted then Assistant Commissioner of Police with responsibility for Operations, Joseph Richardson, who confirmed that a search of HMP was conducted and a number of restricted items were found, but had refused to state their nature.
It seems to be a common occurrence in the Caribbean where searches of prisoners in correctional facilities reveal finds of prohibited items.
On February 8, 2009, a Lay Pastor was caught trying to smuggle marijuana and cellular phones into the Camp Street Prison in Georgetown, Guyana. And on (June 7, 2011 at the same facility, a woman allegedly stashed a cellular phone in a piece of bread with the intention of passing it to an inmate.
In Trinidad, a prisoner at Remand Yard, Golden Grove Prison in Arouca was on Friday, February 4, 2011 transferred to the Maximum Security Prison section of that facility after he was found with an eight-inch ‘Rambo’ knife, three cellular phones and three chargers.
And in Jamaica, a July 2010 search of prisoners at the all-female Fort Augusta Adult Correctional Facility reportedly turned up at least five instances where mobile phones were hidden inside the vaginas of prisoners.
