Two men yesterday appeared before acting Chief Magistrate Priya Sewnarine-Beharry at the Georgetown Magistrates’ Court where one was sentenced to three years in prison and fined $30,000 for cocaine trafficking, while the other will appear in Court 5 today after he was refused bail in the same matter.
Lawrence Simpson and Mervin Mahipat were accused of having in their possession 10 grammes of cocaine for the purpose of trafficking on May 13.
Police Corporal Vinetta Pindar, prosecuting, told the court that police carried out a raid on a High Street home where the two defendants were staying. She stated that the substance was found in the home along with a smoke pot. They were arrested, cautioned and subsequently taken to Brickdam Police Station where the substance was weighed and it amounted to 10 grammes. When given a chance to speak, Simpson, with an American accent, boldly stated, “I had 10 grammes of cocaine but it was not for trafficking, it was for my personal use.”
Meanwhile, Mahipat, also in an American accent, entered a not-guilty plea stating that he had just come out of the interior where he works and was visiting his friend.
Magistrate Sewnarine-Beharry then sentenced Simpson and transferred Mahipat’s case to Court 5 where it will be called today.
