Keon Brewster, who pleaded guilty last year to trying to smuggle cocaine hidden in rum out of the country, yesterday testified that neither of his alleged co-accused had any involvement in the crime.
Brewster testified on behalf of his co-accused and former employees of the Cheddi Jagan International Airport (CJIA), Chris Douglas and Loric Williams, before Chief Magistrate Ann McLennan in Georgetown yesterday and stressed that neither of the defendants played any role in the attempt to smuggle the cocaine.
The trio was charged on June 1st, 2015 with possession of 6.034 kilogrammes of cocaine for trafficking. Later that same month, Brewster had changed his plea from not guilty to guilty and he was subsequently sentenced to four years in jail and fined over $15 million.
Brewster yesterday testified that on the day the cocaine was found, he went to the restroom and saw Douglas, who was working on an air conditioning unit in front of the restroom.
He added that as he went into the second washroom in the restroom, he saw four bottles on the ground in the corner section of the toilet. Brewster told the court that because of his love for alcohol, he opened one of the bottles and tasted it then proceeded to place three into his bag and left one behind.
When asked if he knew Douglas, Brewster reminded the court that he only recalled seeing him working at the CJIA on May 29, 2015, when the cocaine was discovered.
He also denied knowing Williams, while pointing out that he only spoke to him yesterday while they were in the lock-ups.
However, under cross-examination by the prosecution about how long he knew Williams, Brewster stated that he had known him by seeing him around in his area.
When questioned about his reasons for testifying on behalf of the defendants, Brewster stated that he had changed his plea to guilty because he committed the offence and that he is in no way attempting to mislead the court.
The case was adjourned to April 4th, when the defence will present another witness.
