Old England man denied bail on ganja trafficking charge

A 53-year-old man who allegedly had in his possession 8.2 kilogrammes (kg) of cannabis was remanded to prison when he appeared before the Georgetown Magistrate’s Court on Tuesday.

Ossie Murphy of Lot 53 Old England, Upper Demerara River pleaded guilty to the charge of possession of narcotics for the purpose of trafficking. However, after giving his explanation to the court Magistrate Hazel Octive-Hamilton entered a not guilty plea on his behalf.

It is alleged that on May 18 Murphy had 8 kg 200 g of cannabis in a bedroom at the said address for the purpose of trafficking.
The accused was remanded to prison and the matter will continue on July 16 in Hamilton’s court.
According to a May 19 police press release, an operation was conducted by the Joint Services last weekend in various Linden areas during which ten fields containing 14,900 cannabis plants with an estimated weight of 3,305 kg were discovered and destroyed.

Murphy was reportedly found in a house with just over 8 kg of marijuana near one of the fields. He was supposed to appear before the court on Monday but the case file was sent to the Director of Public Prosecutions for advice and he didn’t appear in court until Tuesday.