The Jamaica Gleaner
Some lawyers are of the view that the fines and sentences that are being handed down to foreign nationals caught smuggling cocaine are not serving as a deterrent, as the number of offenders is constantly increasing.
On Wednesday, yet another British national, Glenn Mason, who was caught trying to smuggle cocaine out of Jamaica via the Sangster International Airport in Montego Bay, St James, was fined $200,000 or three months in prison.
In October, the Jamaica Constabulary Force released data indicating that 27 foreigners, mostly British nationals, were arrested between January and September this year for breaches of the Dangerous Drugs Act.
Attorney-at-law Suwayne Phillips, who practises out of western Jamaica, told The Gleaner that repeated publications about foreigners being arrested in Jamaica on drug-related charges have not deterred individuals who are willing to take that risk because they believe they will not be caught.
“I do not think that the fines and sentences that are handed down are effective to deter these persons from doing that sort of thing because we keep seeing foreign nationals coming back before the court for these types of matters,” said Phillips. “I am sure they hear about these other foreigners, whether in the United Kingdom or the United States of America, because naturally, these stories run in The Gleaner, and most of the time you see these stories online, so it is not like they do not hear about it, yet it is not deterring them from doing it,” said Phillips.
“It does not matter whether they get just fines, or fines and prison sentences, or just prison sentences because in the long run, I do not see them being a deterrent. Most of the persons that I encounter believe or have the mentality that they will not get caught, or if they are caught, most of them rarely ever accept responsibility, and persons are still doing it and will continue to do it.”
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