A 38-year-old Taxi Driver who swallowed 114 pellets laced with cocaine was sentenced to four years imprisonment and fined $2.5M after he admitted to trafficking cocaine.
Julius Fidel Watkins, a father of four, pleaded guilty to the charge which stated that between September 12 and September 15, 2017, he had 960 grams of cocaine in his possession for the purpose of trafficking. He excreted the cocaine at the Woodlands Hospital and the Georgetown Public Hospital Corporation.
Prosecutor for the Customs Anti-Narcotic Unit (CANU), Konyo Sandiford told the court that Watkins was an outgoing passenger on a Fly Jamaica flight destined for Canada and on the day in question, he approached the scanning area at Cheddi Jagan International Airport when a CANU officer noticed him behaving in a suspicious manner.
Watkins was questioned by the officer and taken to CANU Headquarters after which he was escorted to the Woodlands Hospital to undergo an X-ray, which showed that he had ingested several round like objects.
Under cation by CANU ranks, the defendant admitted to swallowing 114 pellets laced with cocaine; he was discharged from the GPHC on September 16.
When asked by Chief Magistrate, Ann McLennan if he had anything to say about his actions, the man explained that he was going through financial difficulties and needed the extra money to send his four kids to school.
Before passing sentence, the Magistrate took into consideration that Watkins pleaded guilty and did not waste the court’s time and he expressed remorse.
