MANCHESTER, Jamaica — The two people at the centre of a $10 million ganja find on the Winston Jones Highway, Manchester July 10 were granted bail when they appeared in the Mandeville Resident Magistrates’ court on Monday.
Santa Cruz, St Elizabeth residents Michael Lennox, 48, a haulage contractor and Kay-Anne Talbert, 29, who is employed at a bar and car wash, were granted bail at $2-million each.Lennox and Talbert, who have no previous convictions, will return to court on July 31.Allegations are that police officers from the Area Three Transnational Crime and Narcotics Division, based on intelligence, stopped and search a truck at about 7:15am.A quantity of marijuana valued at approximately $10-million was reportedly found packaged in plastic bags inside the truck.Lennox who is the owner and driver of the truck and Talbert a passenger were arrested.The charges included possession of and dealing in ganja.Lennox who was in court on Monday was represented by attorneys Ernie Smith and Marcus Greenwood.However, his co-accused who was in custody at the Porus lock up was unable to attend court reportedly due to transportation problems by the police.She was represented by attorneys Thomas Levine and Yushaine Morgan.Lennox’s attorneys contended that their client was hired to deliver the packages and he was under the impression that he was transporting agricultural produce. A sum of $190,000 reportedly found in his possession was part payment to do the job.Reading character references from two Justices of the Peace and a pastor as evidence, Smith told the court that Lennox is known as a “man of integrity.”A large sum of cash was reportedly also found in Talbert’s possession.Her attorneys told the court that it was to be used to make preparation for an upcoming event to be held at her place of work.Meanwhile given that Lennox was reportedly hired to deliver the packages, the prosecution argued against bail on the basis that there may be people to be charged for conspiracy.Lennox however refused to give the name(s) of those who hired him.He reportedly took that position in the interest of his own safety and that of his family.Smith dismissed the prosecution’s claim that other people to be charged in the matter was “a wild goose chase.”-Alicia SutherlandLike our Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/jamaicaobserverFollow us on Twitter https://twitter.com/JamaicaObserverView the original article here
Two in $10m ganja bust on bail
