2010 drug case for hearing on October 3

WESTERN BUREAU:The hearing for two St James men who were arrested in connection with an international drug-smuggling operation in 2010 failed to begin on Monday due to the absence of representatives from the office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP).

Fifty-four-year-old Vincent Saddler, who is charged with conspiracy to export ganja, and 39-year-old Donovan Clarke, who is charged with possession of and dealing in cocaine and conspiracy to export ganja, had their bail extended, and their case was set for trial on October 3.

It is alleged that on December 1, 2010, Saddler, a former police sergeant; and Clarke, who was employed to the Sangster International Airport in Montego Bay, were arrested during an operation by investigators from the Anti-Corruption Branch in relation to alleged narcotics trafficking between the Sangster International Airport and the Lester B. Pearson International Airport in Toronto, Canada. Nine alleged co-conspirators were also arrested in Canada, as a result of the same operation.

On Monday, Clarke's attorney, Dionne Meyler-Reid, noted that the representatives from the DPP's office had provided a new date for the case to go to trial.

"I saw some letters with some dates, and this time, it is for October 3. This is the date agreed on with the DPP and Mrs. Valerie Neita-Robertson (Saddler's attorney), and I will make myself available," Meyler-Reid told presiding magistrate Wilson Smith, who subsequently set the case to be heard on that date.

- Christopher Thomas