western bureau

Montego Bay Resident Magistrate's Court judge, RM Winsome Henry, has expressed her concern at what she describe as a drug trade between Jamaica and Curaçao.

RM Henry voiced her concerns on Tuesday when a she was faced with the third case in two days of persons trying to smuggle small quantities of ganja to Curacao.

When she enquired of the police the street value of a pound of ganja in Curaçao, the RM was informed that it is valued at US$2,000.

In recent months the court has been faced with cases of this nature, with a large number of the accused persons heading for Curaçao.

St. Ann resident, Owayne Allen, 26, was the third man to be sentenced in two days after pleading guilty to possession, dealing and attempting to export ganja.

He was about to aboard the same flight, which Errol Findley of St. Catherine and Robert Miller of St. Ann were attempting to board when they were held with ganja. The other two men were fined but Findley was given a suspended sentence on Monday.

Allen was given a six-month sentence suspended for 18 months.

However, like the other two accused, he was fined $2,600 for possession and $8,000 for attempting to export.

Allen checked into the Sangster International Airport to board an Air Jamaica flight to Curacao on May 25.

A suitcase he had checked in was searched and a package of ganja weighing a pound was recovered from a secret compartment. He told the police that he was just trying something.