A Golden Grove woman was yesterday sentenced to three years imprisonment after being found guilty of trying to traffic cannabis hidden amongst bales of toilet paper.
Sharon Campbell, of Section ‘C’ Golden Grove, had initially appeared on January 30 before Chief Magistrate Priya Sewnarine-Beharry charged with the possession of 24 grammes of cannabis for the purpose of trafficking. The woman had denied the charge when it was read to her.
According to Prosecutor Michael Grant, Campbell had gone to River Crest Shipping Company, a postal business on Charlotte and Light streets, to post some items to Issano in the Mazaruni District on January 23. Among the items was a large bale of toilet paper.
The items underwent a physical check by a security guard on duty and during the search, three rolls were found missing from the bale of sanitary items. In their place were three black plastic bags. The guard took them out, opened them and discovered seeds, leaves and stems suspected to be cannabis.
After asking whether it was indeed cannabis, the security guard’s suspicions were confirmed when Campbell allegedly responded in the affirmative, stating that “is a lil hustle I doing.”
Campbell also allegedly offered the man a large sum of money to permit her to post the package. However, he declined and informed her that he would have to report the matter to the relevant authorities. He also insisted that she accompany him. Despite his insistence, Campbell left the business.
Prosecutor Grant stated that the guard took the bale of toilet papers with the black plastic bags to the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) headquarters, where he reported the matter and handed over the evidence to the police.
Despite attempts at reaching the accused at her home, she was not in custody until, accompanied by her lawyer Clyde Ford, she turned herself in.
The woman had been remanded to prison by both Magistrates Sewnarine-Beharry and Fabayo Azore. However, she subsequently acquired bail from the High Court.
Yesterday, Prosecutor Adduni Inniss was able to prove that Campbell was guilty, beyond a reasonable doubt, of her accused offence. There had been five witnesses for the prosecution.
Along with her imprisonment, Campbell was ordered to pay a $30,000 fine.
