A COAST GUARD Lieutenant attached to the Guyana Defence Force (GDF) who was found with a quantity of marijuana and an illegal firearm, along with his acquaintance, was, on Thursday, October 3, 2019, arraigned before Principal Magistrate Faith McGusty.
30-year-old Dominic Gilpin, a coast guard officer of East Bank Essequibo and 30-year-old Paul Murray, a miner, of New Amsterdam, Berbice, appeared at the Georgetown Magistrates’ Court and were jointly charged.

The men pleaded not guilty to the charge which stated that, on September 30, 2019, at Avenue of the Republic, Georgetown, they had in their possession five kilograms (11pounds) of marijuana for the purpose of trafficking.

Gilpin however was charged separately for having a .32 Taurus pistol along with matching rounds of ammunition while he was not the holder of a firearm licence. He pleaded not guilty to the said charge.

Gilpin was represented by Attorneys-at-law Latchmie Rahamat and Siand Dhurjon while Murray was represented by Attorney Patrice Henry.
Rahamat, in an application for bail, told the court that the cannabis was found in the trunk of Gilpin’s car while the firearm and ammunition were found in the middle compartment between the front seats.

The Attorney stated that there were several other persons in the said vehicle, when her client left the vehicle with the key in the ignition and entered a building on Lombard Street to conduct some business.
Rahamat added that her client maintained his innocence and has no knowledge of the said articles found in the car.

Meanwhile, Murray’s Attorney also argued that her client has no knowledge of the illegal items and that he was just a passenger in the car.
Police Prosecutor Ceon Blackman noted that, on the day in question, about 14:00 hours, the Police acted on information received and intercepted motorcar PXX 94, the car owned and driven by Gilpin.

The Police told him of the information received and requested to conduct a search on the vehicle. Murray was a passenger in the vehicle at the time.
Blackman stated that Gilpin pointed to the middle compartment of the vehicle and admitted to the Police that he had a firearm inside which he uses for protection when he conducts financial transactions.

Blackman added that the ranks then proceeded to search the car and retrieved the said firearm and a bag with leaves, stems and seeds, believed to be cannabis, concealed in the corner of the car trunk.

The men were taken into custody and an investigation was launched.
Prosecutor Blackman objected to bail being granted to both defendants based on the seriousness of the charge and the amount of narcotics retrieved.
Magistrate McGusty remanded Gilpin to prison while Murray was released on $250,000 bail and ordered to lodge his passport at the court and report weekly to the police station until his next court appearance.
The matter was adjourned until October 17, 2019.