December 1 date for fishermen in billion-dollar cocaine bust
Published:Saturday | July 30, 2022 | 12:05 AMChristopher Thomas/Gleaner Writer
WESTERN BUREAU:
Jason Wedderburn, Elvis Johnson, and Daniel Hanson, the fishermen who were arrested following last November’s seizure of over 2,000 pounds of cocaine off the coast of Black River, St Elizabeth, will know on December 1 whether the prosecution has completed its file in its case against them.
Wedderburn, 31, and Johnson, 36, both of Westmoreland addresses; and Hanson, 40, of a St Elizabeth address, got the new court date and had their bails extended following their latest appearance before the St Elizabeth Parish Court on Thursday.
Although it was not disclosed what documents remain outstanding from the prosecution’s case file, attorney-at-law Martyn Thomas, who is part of the trio’s defence team, told The Gleaner that the new date was set in order to grant time for the file to be completed.
“The matter has been set for December 1 for mention, as the file is incomplete and there are statements to be served on the defence,” Thomas said in a brief update.
During a previous court date on December 2 last year, several statements and the forensic report had been outstanding from the file. The case was last heard on March 3 this year.
In addition to attorney Thomas, the three men are also represented by attorneys Christopher Townsend and Michael Hemmings.
It is alleged that, on the night of November 22, 2021, at approximately 9:00 p.m., members of the Jamaica Defence Force’s (JDF) Maritime, Air and Cyber Command Unit (MACC), led by Brigadier Roderick Williams, intercepted a boat in which the three defendants were travelling off the coast of Black River. The boat was searched and 34 knitted bags with packages of a white substance resembling cocaine, valued at $1 billion, were found.
The men and the packages were taken to shore and handed over to the Narcotics Police. Hanson, Wedderburn, and Johnson were subsequently charged with possession of cocaine, dealing in cocaine, trafficking cocaine, importing cocaine, and conspiracy to import cocaine.
The drug bust, which was one of the largest cocaine seizures made by the security forces in recent times, took place several days after the JDF Coast Guard’s official formation ceremony in Discovery Bay, St Ann on November 16, 2021, for the addition of 20 soldiers to its ranks.
At that time, the JDF voiced its intention to step up its presence in the maritime space in an effort to repel trafficking of drugs and weapons and illicit fishing in Jamaican waters. Up to that time, the Government had invested approximately US$92 million (J$14.3 billion) in border security since 2017.