Man tells court he was using ‘ganja’ to treat prostate cancer; jailed for 18 months

A former member of the Guyana Defence Force (GDF) was on Friday sentenced to 18 months jail for trafficking over 300 grams of cannabis, which he claimed he used to treat his prostate cancer.

Remington Griffith appeared before Chief Magistrate (ag) Sherdel Isaacs-Marcus at the Georgetown Magistrate’s Court and pleaded guilty to the charge.

The court heard that on May 28, 2019, at Port Kaituma, Region One, he had 371 grams of cannabis in his possession for the purpose of trafficking.

The former GDF officer was charged jointly with his 18-year-old son, Shaquelle Griffith, however, the teen had denied the charge and was released on $70,000 bail; he will return to court on June 6, 2019.

Police Prosecutor Adduni Inniss told the court that on the day in question, Police went to the Griffith’s Port Kaituma home and conducted a search when they found the illegal drugs hidden inside a couch.

In court, Remington Griffith told the court that he used the cannabis for medicinal purposes for the past 11 years to treat his cancer.

“I does use the weed with dandelion, lemon juice, stinging nettle to treat the cancer,” the father of eight told the court.