Businessman accused of attempting to export cocaine in boxes of oats freed
Businessman Mordecai Buckley, who was accused of attempting to export cocaine concealed in Foska oats boxes, was freed on Friday when he appeared in the Kingston and St Andrew Parish Court.
Buckley was freed after Parish Court Judge Paula Blake Powell upheld a no-case submission from King's Counsel Peter Champagnie and attorney-at-law Samoi Campbell that the prosecution did not prove its case against Buckley.
Buckley was freed of charges of possession of cocaine, attempting to export cocaine, dealing in cocaine and trafficking in cocaine.
The allegations were that on December 21, 2020, Buckley was attempting to export a shipment of goods from the Norman Manley International Airport when the cocaine was found.
Buckley told the police that a man had given him the package to ship to an address in Canada.
He assisted the police in their investigation which led to the arrest of Delroy Johnson.
Crown witnesses testified that Buckley was not at the warehouse when Johnson delivered the sealed boxes of oats in December 2020 for shipment. Buckley did not pick up the boxes until the morning of the shipment.
The attorneys in their no-case submission pointed out that there was no evidence that Buckley at any point examined the boxes prior to taking them to the airport. They also referred to the fact that an employee from the Customs Department had said under cross-examination that the anomalies with the boxes were not readily apparent without putting the boxes through a scanner.
Buckley was charged jointly with Johnson.
Johnson is being represented by attorney-at-law Thomas Shorter and his trial will continue on December 18.
0 Comment