A cook, who is accused of trafficking marijuana, is claiming the drug was planted in her luggage unbeknownst to her, a court heard yesterday.
Natasha Livingstone, 24, of 105 Cane View Avenue, South Ruimveldt, appeared before Chief Magistrate Priya Sewnarine-Beharry yesterday and was remanded to prison after denying that she had 102 grammes of cannabis in her possession for the purpose of trafficking.
According to the police, Livingstone was on her way into the interior in a bus when the vehicle stopped at the checkpoint at Mabura Outpost. There, she was asked by police to identify her bags and did so. A search subsequently uncovered the marijuana.
In Livingstone’s defence, her lawyer explained that a check was conducted before the woman disembarked the bus to use the washroom. Livingstone reportedly left her two bags behind. She soon returned and saw her bags outside the bus with several others.
Livingstone was then asked to identify her bags and the cannabis was subsequently found in one.
The lawyer maintained that Livingstone was innocent and had been framed. She added that Livingstone had no knowledge of the drug and there had been a window of opportunity for it to be placed there by someone else.
The lawyer further said that there were multiple persons in the bus at the time.
Prosecutor Michael Grant objected to bail and said that the defence had raised no special circumstances for the consideration of bail.
As a result, the Chief Magistrate remanded Livingstone to prison. Livingstone will make her next appearance at the Linden Magistrate’s Court on October 14.
