GEORGETOWN, Guyana – A Guyanese father of four, who claimed to be unemployed, was on Friday (Mar. 2) sentenced to four years imprisonment and fined G$30 000 after pleading guilty to possession of cocaine for the purpose of trafficking.
Information reaching this media house states that 30-year-old Nigel Anthony Permaul of 168 Lodge Housing Scheme, Georgetown, Guyana was on Thursday (Mar. 1) nabbed by agents of the Customs Ant-Narcotics Unit (CANU) at the Cheddi Jagan International Airport (CJIA) with 2.176 kilograms of cocaine after he had checked in to board a LIAT flight to St. Kitts via Barbados.
According to Kaieteur News, CANU’s prosecutor Oswald Massiah told the court that Permaul’s luggage was scanned by CANU’s ranks who noticed some strange objects in the bottom of the bag.
“Permaul was called to verify that the bag was his and produced documents confirming his claim. When the drug ranks punctured the bottom of the suitcase, a white powdery substance suspected to be cocaine poured out.
“After the substance was showed to him, Massiah said that Permaul admitted to the substance being cocaine and alleged that he was given the drugs by someone whom he only knew by an alias,” the media house said.
An online media house, Demerarawaves, however noted, “He said he barely knew the man and the only name available was Alius.”
The drugs were reportedly extracted from the suitcase and weighed in Permaul’s presence.
Kaieteur News also said that while in court, Permaul claimed that he was not finding work and that he has three children, another on the way and his mother to take care of them.
“He begged the court for leniency. The magistrate commented on the prevalence and seriousness of the offence and related that a strong message be sent to the offender and others contemplating the offence.”
This is not the first time that an individual was caught by CANU’s agents at the CJIA with illegal drugs bound for St. Kitts.
On Wednesday, June 2, 2010, Dexter Lewis of St. Kitts and Adrian Beckles of Guyana appeared before Magistrate Hazel Octave-Hamilton at the Georgetown Magistrate’s Court and pleaded not guilty to charges ranging from drug trafficking to unlawful possession of guns and ammunition.
It was alleged that on Sunday, May 30 of that year at the CJIA, the duo had one kilogram of cocaine, one 1.4 Magnum revolver, a pistol and 15 live rounds in their possession.
While Beckles had no defence counsel, Lewis was represented by Attorney-at-Law Adrian Thompson, who in a bail application told the court that his client is a St. Kitts national who was visiting his reputed wife, a Guyanese.
The two men were remanded to prison and were scheduled to appear at the Providence Magistrate’s court on Monday, June 7, 2010.
