Woman, 23, remanded for allegedly smuggling cocaine in religious item

Twenty-three-year old Lisa Ramnarine was on Thursday remanded to prison for allegedly smuggling cocaine inside a religious item via the DHL courier service.

Ramnarine of Hague, West Coast Demerara, appeared before Magistrate Sherdel Isaacs-Marcus at the Georgetown Magistrates’ Court.

She pleaded not guilty to the charge which alleged that on June 7, at DHL’s Fifth Street, Alberttown, Georgetown Headquarters, she trafficked 540 grams (about one pound) of cocaine.

The Magistrate remanded Ramnarine to prison until July 5 and transferred the case to the Chief Magistrate Ann McLennan.

According to reports, Ramnarine was arrested by ranks of the Customs Anti-Narcotic Unit (CANU) following the discovery of cocaine in a parcel at DHL which contained a Hindu Havan Kund and other religious items.

Officers examined the items and discovered a hidden compartment within the Kund, which contained the cocaine. The sender’s information retrieved from the package led to the arrest of Ramnarine.