Two men who were held on a boat in the Pomeroom River, Essequibo, with 209 pounds of cocaine in 2017, have been sentenced to two years behind bars, together with a fine of $99,701,700, after being found guilty of trafficking narcotics.
The sentence was handed down by Magistrate Esther Sam in the Suddie Magistrate Courts.
The Magistrate ruled that having considered all the evidence led by the prosecution, she found the defendants guilty as charged of the offence.
On July 17, 2017, at Pomeroon River, Essequibo, John Da Silva, 47, of Grant Strong Hope, Lower Pomeroon and Kevin Fitz Gordon, 36, of Lot 18 Jib Housing Scheme, Essequibo, trafficked 94.954 kilograms of cocaine.
They had both denied the charge and were out on $1M bail each.
However, at the sentencing, Gordon via skype indicated to the court that he’s in Aranka and could not make it. Hence, the Magistrate instructed him to present himself to the nearest police station so that he can begin serving the jail term.
Facts presented by Customs Anti-Narcotic Unit (CANU) prosecutor Konyo Sandiford stated that on the day in question, Guyana Defence Force (GDF) Coast Guard ranks were on patrol when they saw the vessel offshore. The men subsequently attempted to flee.
The men were then arrested and taken into custody.
Gordon was previously charged in 2015 for the trafficking of narcotics. It was alleged that on January 28, 2015, at Sheriff Street, Georgetown, Gordon, along with Adrian David, 25, of ‘D’ Field, Sophia; Carl Roberts, 27, of 62 Duncan Street, Campbellville and Fabian Gonsalves of Pomeroon River, had in their possessions 11.150 kilograms of cocaine for the purpose of trafficking.
It was reported that on the day in question, the quartet was apprehended on Sheriff Street by CANU ranks with a five-gallon container which had 10 bricks, suspected to be cocaine inside.
That matter was however dismissed due to lack of evidence.
