Oliver Bazilio, the son of boxing promoter Keith Bazilio, was yesterday sentenced to three years in jail after he was found guilty of possession of 10 grammes of cannabis.
Georgetown Magistrate Judy Latchman handed down the ruling at the conclusion of the trial of Bazilio, who was charged with having the illegal drug on March 6, at 261 Blue Sackie Drive, South Ruimveldt.
Magistrate Latchman said that having considered all of the evidence led by the prosecutor through the different witnesses and taking into consideration the sworn evidence presented by Bazilio, she found him guilty of the crime.
The magistrate further noted that she took into consideration the fact that the cannabis was found in Bazilio’s pocket. Taking into consideration the prevalence of the offence, the manner in which it was concealed and the need to prohibit others from committing the crime, Bazilio was sentenced. He was also fined $30,000.
The senior Bazilio had also been charged jointly with his son and another man, Shemroy Robertson, with trafficking 4.734 kilogrammes (equivalent to 10.4 pounds) of cannabis at the same address but he was freed due to a lack of evidence.
Meanwhile, Robertson, who was also charged with having in his possession 440 grammes of cannabis for trafficking on the same day at the same Blue Sackie Drive address, walked free yesterday, after he was found not guilty of the crime.
Prior to finding Robertson not guilty, Magistrate Latchman told the court that in his unsworn evidence Robertson stated that he had visited the premises because he heard that his friend Oliver was sick. The magistrate noted that Shemroy also stated that he was at the premises for a few minutes when he heard “CANU, CANU open up!”
The magistrate then stated that she found it incredible that the defendant would hold on to a bag containing the drugs after hearing “CANU, CANU open up!” She further noted that the accused would have had sufficient time to get rid of the drugs before the door was opened.
Upon these grounds, Robertson was found not guilty.
