Festus Hohenkirk, who admitted to being found with a “blunt,” told a city court yesterday that he was wrongly charged when he was arraigned for drug trafficking.
Hohenkirk was charged yesterday with possession of cannabis for trafficking, which carries a minimum sentence of three years’ imprisonment.
The 47-year-old labourer from Wortmanville was accused of being found with 15 grammes of cannabis.
The man, who had initially pleaded guilty to the charge, stated in his defence that what the police found in his possession was indeed a blunt, which could not amount to 15 grammes. Magistrate Fabayo Azore, who presided over the case, entered a not guilty plea on behalf of Hohenkirk, after noting the inconsistencies between his testimony and the prosecutor’s claims.
The prosecutor relayed that on Wednesday, August 5th, at 10:40AM, in the Diamond/Grove Housing Scheme, Hohenkirk was stopped by police and a search was carried out after they observed that he was behaving in a suspicious manner. During the search, a black plastic bag containing a quantity of seeds and cannabis were allegedly retrieved from Hohenkirk’s left side pants pocket.
The prosecutor further stated that after identifying the contents of the bag and admitting that the cannabis belonged to him, Hohenkirk was informed of his offence, cautioned, and then taken to the police station.
Hohenkirk was remanded to prison and the matter has been adjourned until Monday.
