Magistrate Priya Beharry yesterday ordered that a US national, who initially admitted having cocaine in his luggage at the Cheddi Jagan International Airport (CJIA), Timehri, and another man at whose home he allegedly stayed, be remanded to prison when they appeared before her at the Georgetown Magistrate’s Court.
Jose Manuel of Queens, New York pleaded guilty, while Jailall Persaud of Beehive, East Coast Demerara entered a not guilty plea to the joint charge of trafficking in narcotics.
Their case was later transferred to the Providence Magistrate’s Court for December 10.
The Customs Anti-Narcotics Unit (CANU) alleges that on November 20, at the CJIA, the duo trafficked in narcotics by attempting to export 1.2 kilogrammes of cocaine to the US.
The unrepresented Manuel, in a distressed voice, said, “I guilty… yes I admit that the cocaine was found in my bag but I don’t know how it got there… it’s not mine.”
The magistrate then entered a not guilty plea for him.
Persaud’s lawyer then applied for bail for him but Special Prosecutor Oswald Massiah objected to bail on the grounds that “if and when the matter will be ventilated the prosecution will present evidence to show that the cocaine found belongs to Manuel.”
The prosecutor explained that this was Manuel’s first trip to Guyana and he has no relatives here.
He said that Manuel hails from Queens, New York, and he is known by a Guyanese living in that same community who has a relationship with Persaud.
Massiah said that arrangements were made for Manuel to stay in Guyana at Persaud’s Beehive, East Coast Demerara home when he travelled here.
He said that on November 15, Manuel travelled from the US to Guyana and was picked up from the airport by Persaud at whom he stayed for the week.
Massiah said that on November 22, Persaud dropped Manuel at the airport so he could return to the US.
He said a check was conducted on Manuel’s luggage by a CANU officer who discovered the narcotics in his suitcase.
Manuel was then arrested and later charged.
The prosecutor said investigations revealed that Persaud was also linked to the transportation of the cocaine to the airport and he was subsequently arrested and later charged.
Meanwhile, Persaud’s lawyer in his bid to secure bail for him stated that in order for the charge to be bailable there must be a special circumstance present and that this circumstance must pertain to the offence and not the offender.
He said that the statements made by the prosecutor did not establish a criminal case against his client.
He said, “I’m baffled as to how a man living till in Beehive on the East Coast of Demerara could be implicated in a drug matter happening till in Timehri.”
The lawyer said further that, “My client has already won the lottery so he has no need to be involved in a matter as such in order to acquire money.”
He also stated that his client owns the building he resides in at Beehive and ten other occupants are also living there.
He said that if the prosecutor is implicating his client in the matter because Manuel stayed at his Beehive residence, “then the prosecution is trying to tell the court that he has evidence to implicate the ten other occupants in the matter.”
He also argued that for the charge to be rightfully laid against his client it must show that Persaud had “custody, possession and control of the prohibited substance” but that none of these conditions were met and so the charge does not support the allegation.
Massiah then interjected, stating that a person does not have to have physical possession of an illegal substance to be associated with it and he would get into the details at the trial.
After listening to both the defence and the prosecution, the magistrate refused bail for both defendants.