Woman cries after being remanded on New Year’s Eve
Published:Saturday | January 1, 2022 | 12:08 AMTanesha Mundle/Staff Reporter
It was a bittersweet moment yesterday for two female friends who found themselves behind bars following an alleged attempt to smuggle contraband into a lock-up, after one was granted bail and the other left in tears when she was remanded.
Twenty-year-old Jada Smith was offered bail in the sum of $80,000 on a charge of unlawful possession, while Trishana Bloomfield was remanded on the same charge when they appeared in the Kingston and St Andrew Parish Court.
“Mi mada jus died and a me alone take care a mi likkle brothers. If me did know, me wouldn’t do this; mi wouldn’t mek she carry it,” Bloomfield cried, pleading for a pardon from the judge.
Both women were arrested and charged on Wednesday with unlawful possession and attempting to smuggle contraband into a penal institution after a cellular phone as well as quantities of ganja and tobacco were found among food that was reportedly being delivered by Smith to Bloomfield’s boyfriend at the lock-up at the Half-Way Tree Police Station
The court heard that the contraband was placed inside a container, which was sandwiched by two containers with the meal, and that Bloomfield had fled the station when the contraband was discovered.
However, yesterday when the matter was mentioned, the prosecution advised the court that they were withdrawing the attempting to smuggle contraband charge against both accused as a lock-up was not classified as a correctional facility under the law.
Smith, through her lawyer, then maintained that she was not aware that the contraband was in the food package.
Her attorney-at-law, Courtney Foster, told Parish Judge Luciano Jackson that her client thought she was doing a favour for her friend, who had reportedly asked her to deliver the food because she did not have an identification card.
“It is really a sad set of circumstances. She is only 20 and has never been before the court,” Foster added, although acknowledging that there were certain precautions that her client should have taken but was ignorant of.
Bloomfield, for her part, admitted that she had asked Smith to take the food, but indicated that it was her boyfriend’s relatives who had given her the meal, adding that she was not aware of the presence of the contraband.
Suffering from diarrhoea
She also rejected reports that she had fled the station.
According to her, she had been suffering from diarrhoea since the night prior and felt that she was about to have an episode inside the station so she rushed to her house, which she said was close to the station.
The judge queried why she went to the station, knowing that she was unwell.
Bloomfield, however, insisted that she did not flee and said that she had given the same explanation to the police when she was arrested, which was corroborated by the investigating officer.
The judge then enquired from Bloomfield if she had a lawyer and found out that she was already facing a charge of illegal possession of firearm and ammunition when she was arrested and was being represented by attorney-at-law Leroy Equiano via a legal aid assignment.
Bloomfield, however, told the court that she was only charged because the weapon, which she said belonged to her boyfriend, was found at her home.
The judge, however, told her that in light of the fact that she committed another criminal offence while on bail and had reportedly fled from the station, bail would not be considered for her at this time.
Bloomfield was instead told to settle legal representation and return to court on January 25.