(Trinidad Guardian) A 25-year-old Guyanese woman has been fined TT$15,000 for evading immigration officers at the Piarco International Airport with the alleged assistance of a security guard.
Fathima Khan was slapped with the fine yesterday after pleading guilty to the Immigration offence before Magistrate Avion Gill during her second court appearance.
According to the evidence in the case, Khan arrived on a flight from Guyana on January 14, last year. With the assistance of a security guard, she was allegedly able to bypass the Immigration Division and Customs and Excise stations and exit the Arrival Terminal into an awaiting vehicle.
Officers of the Special Operations Response Team (SORT) received information about the crime and arrested her at a house in Carapichiama, later that week.
Although Khan elected to plead guilty to the offence, her friend who picked her up and the security guard, who were also charged in relation to the incident, pleaded not guilty. Their cases are expected to come up for hearing in September.
In her mitigation plea, Khan’s lawyer Renuka Rambhajan asked the court to impose a conditional discharge under the Summary Courts Act based on her client providing information to investigators.
Rambhajan suggested that a prison term was inappropriate and a fine was more suitable.
In deciding on the fine, Gill stated that she considered Khan’s early guilty plea, her clean criminal record and the fact that she assisted police.
However, she rejected claims that she simply followed her friend’s instructions as she was fearful that she would be denied entry.
Gill noted that Khan, a higgler, had entered the country legitimately in the past and stated that she (Khan) could not claim that she was unaware of the proper immigration process.
Noting that the country was grappling with illegal immigration, Gill said that the fine should serve as a deterrent to persons considering similar conduct.
Khan was given three months in which to pay the fine. In the event that she fails to meet the deadline, she will face 18 months in prison.
The case is being prosecuted by Deputy Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) George Busby.
