The cocaine that was supposed to be for his financial gain ended up making Canadian citizen Michel Namroud poorer by $20 000, after he appeared in the No 5 Supreme Court yesterday.
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And if he does not pay the fine in three months, it will cost him a year of his life in prison.
Namroud, now 62, formerly of No 35, Apes Hill Polo Estate, St James, was back in court by Zoom for sentencing after he had pleaded guilty, at an earlier Session of the Continuous Sittings, to having two kilogrammes of cocaine in his possession; having a traffickable quantity – two kilogrammes – of cocaine; having three kilogrammes of cocaine; having a traffickable quantity – three kilogrammes – of cocaine, and having two rounds of 38-special calibre ammunition, all on June 23, 2021.
He was represented by Senior Counsel Andrew Pilgrim and attorney Summer Hassell, while Deputy Director of Public Prosecutions Krystal Delaney and Senior State Counsel Kevin Forde appeared for the State.
Justice Pamela Beckles, who noted the drug trafficker had been “diagnosed with certain health challenges and has been advised against travelling”, said she had considered the nature and gravity of the offences; the quantity of the drugs; the premeditated nature of the offences and their prevalence in society.
She said she was satisfied the offences had crossed the threshold for the imposition of a custodial sentence.
She determined that six years was the appropriate starting point for the drug offences and two years was the appropriate starting sentence for the ammunition.
The judge then considered Namroud’s guilty pleas, his cooperation with police, expression of remorse and health challenges.
She also considered that he spent 1 053 days on remand.
“Illegal drugs and illegal firearm offences, of which ammunition is a part, have a profound and destabilising effect on our society and are primary drivers of the high rate of crime and violence in our society.
“Any sentence this court imposes must serve as a warning to those who engage in such activities that they will receive severe punishment,” she added.
Justice Beckles noted Namroud was 57 years at the time and “should have been old enough and mature enough to understand the consequences of your actions”.
She deducted one-third, for the guilty pleas, and the 1 053 days spent on remand.
She sentenced him to time served on the ammunition offence, but fined him $20 000 in three months or one year in prison for possession of the three kilogrammes of cocaine. She convicted, reprimanded and discharged him for the other drug offences.
The court had heard police executed a search warrant at his Apes Hill Polo Estate house and found the cocaine in a cupboard in the bathroom.
When he was asked to account for it, he told police: “Someone gave that cocaine to me to pick up and drop off.”
He, however, denied knowing about the two bullets found in a kitchen drawer. (HLE)