A prison officer, whom the court heard was caught with a bag of marijuana at the Camp Street Prison while reporting for duty, was today slapped with a drug trafficking charge and remanded to prison.
Twenty-two-year-old Cleon Webster of Lot 2 Golden Grove, West Coast Berbice, appeared before Principal Magistrate Faith McGusty in the Georgetown Magistrates’ Courts.
He denied the charge which stated that on June 14, 2019 at the Camp Street Prison, he had in his possession 120 grams of marijuana for purpose of trafficking.
Facts presented by Police Prosecutor Seon Blackman stated that on the day in question, Webster was entering the prison to report for duty when he was stopped and searched by an officer.
The court heard it was while being searched that leaves, seeds, and stems suspected to be marijuana was found in a bag that he was carrying.
He was then arrested and allegedly told officers that the bag belongs to his sister. He was later charged with the trafficking offence.
His lawyer Maxwell McKay, in an unsuccessful bail application, told the court that his client cooperated with the investigation and is not a flight risk. However, Prosecutor Blackman strongly objected to bail being granted to Webster on the grounds of the prevalence of the offence and the penalty the charge attracts.
The magistrate, after listening to both sides, remanded Webster to prison until July 10.
