Lodge nanny gets 3 years, businesswoman remanded following cocaine bust

A nanny who was busted with a quantity of cocaine at the Cheddi Jagan International Airport (CJIA) was on Wednesday morning jailed for three years after confessing to having the drug in her possession for trafficking purposes.

Bernadette Evandey Warren, of Lodge Housing Scheme, Georgetown, made an appearance before Magistrate Fabayo Azore at the Georgetown Magistrates’ Court, where she pleaded guilty to the charge which stated that on Sunday, April 16, she had 1.5 kilogram of cocaine concealed in her luggage at the CJIA.

Based on information received, the 51-year-old woman was a Dynamic Airways passenger destined for the John F Kennedy (JFK) Airport, New York in the United States, on the day in question. The defendant reportedly checked in two suitcases and proceeded to the scanning area where a false wall was noticed in one of the cases. Alert ranks of the Customs Anti-Narcotics Unit (CANU) whose suspicions were aroused proceeded to puncture the walls of the suitcase leading to the discovery of a white substance in two transparent bags.

Warren was told of the offence and cautioned, before being escorted to CANU Headquarters where she was charged with the offence shortly after.

Reports are that Warren had only secured her US visa earlier this year and it was her first trip to the foreign country.

In addition to the three-year sentence, the caretaker was ordered to pay a fine of $4.1 million, which is equivalent to triple the street value of the illicit substance.

An emotional Warren told the Magistrate that she is a mother of two, aged 28 and 11, and briefly apologised to the court for her actions before she was escorted out of the hearing.

Meanwhile, a 36-year-old city businesswoman who was caught “cooking ” cocaine on Easter Sunday was remanded to prison after denying charges of cocaine possession. Joy Jacqueline Cownes was on April 16, 2017, busted with 2.2 kg of cocaine at her Lodge Housing Scheme, Georgetown residence after a conscience-stricken Warren leaked information to CANU officials following the drug bust at the CJIA.

Some $14.5 million in local currency and US$744, along with other sums of Trinidad and Tobago currency, which the accused claimed were proceeds from her boutique were also seized from the woman’s premises.

CANU Prosecutor Konyo Sandiford told the court that the substance was found behind the false walls of an empty suitcase when the officials raided the premises of the accused. Sandiford added that smaller portions were found in the kitchen area of the house, reportedly in a pot on the stove as well as a bowl.

The Prosecutor stated that Cownes, despite her refusal to sign caution statements, made several oral statements, even naming her supplier and child’s father, whom the Police are currently after.

Defence Attorney Adrian Thompson, in his request for bail in a reasonable sum for his client, related that the house was never searched in the presence of his client and the said narcotics were not found in her possession.

Bail was refused and the woman will remain incarcerated pending trial, which is set to commence on May 3, at the Georgetown Magistrates’ Courts.