Tabatinga ganja accused granted $40,000 bail

A 22-year-old man was granted bail on Wednesday by Chief Magistrate Ann McLennan after he was charged with being in possession of 10 grammes of ganja.

Anthony Atkinson was read a charge by the Chief Magistrate which stated that on December 13, at Tabatinga, Lethem, he had in his possession 10 grammes of cannabis.

Atkinson, a mechanic pleaded not guilty to the crime.

The defendant’s attorney, Jerome Khan, told the court that the young man has been suffering with malaria, and the Lethem area had run out of medication which caused him to travel to Boa Vista, where he was receiving treatment.

Upon his return to the Lethem area, he was later searched and the drugs were found on him, but he had no knowledge what it was since it had been given to him as a treatment.

Khan then requested that his client be granted reasonable bail.

This request was granted by the Chief Magistrate which saw the defendant being released on $40,000 bail.

The matter was transferred to the Lethem Magistrate’s Court for March 7, 2017.