A 54-YEAR-OLD Jamaican national appeared before city Magistrate Leron Daly on Friday after recently being nabbed at the Guyana Post Office Corporation (GPOC) attempting to smuggle cocaine in deodorant bottles.Easton Stapleton pleaded guilty to the charge when it was read to him, citing that Customs Anti- Narcotics Unit (CANU) officers had made a deal with him if he assisted them with their investigation.
Stapleton admitted to having 526 grams of cocaine in his possession for the purpose of trafficking on Tuesday, August 10, at the GPOC.
CANU Prosecutor Konyo Sandiford-Thompson told the court that on Tuesday, Stapleton went to the post office to inquire about the procedures for posting a package.
According to Thompson, the foreign national left when he was told that a CANU officer stationed at the post office would have to check the package before shipping.
A CANU officer became suspicious and trailed Stapleton before confronting him at the back of Fogarty’s Department Store. The package was inspected and inside contained 20 roll-on deodorant bottles along with several markers. Further checks found that the inside of the items were laced with cocaine.
The unrepresented Stapleton told the court that on Tuesday he was destined to leave the county and he was given a package by someone to take overseas
“I didn’t want to take the package with me, so I decided to post it, but the lady at the post office told me that I didn’t have a local address to post the box, so I just left,” the 54-year-old told the court.
Stapleton stated that he threw away the package, but a CANU officer trailed him, picked the items up and took him back to the post office.
The magistrate after hearing the man’s claims, inquired if he was changing his plea, but he replied “No, I’m not disputing nothing my worship… ah just adding to it.”
Prosecutor Thompson requested a short adjournment because the drug-analysis report was still outstanding. Magistrate Daly remanded the Jamaican until Monday, August 15, when he would be sentenced.