Derek Achong
Senior Reporter
derek.achong@guardian.co.tt
A security guard and a baggage handler have been freed of conspiring to traffic 63 kilos of cocaine through the ANR Robinson Airport in Tobago.
Andrez Phillips, 36, of Darrell Spring, Scarborough, and 34-year-old Kylon Baptiste were freed of the charge last Wednesday, after prosecutors failed to meet an extended deadline to file witness statements needed to advance their case.
Phillips’ lawyer, Shawn Morris, of the Public Defenders’ Department (PDD), called for High Court Master Kimitria Gray to discharge the men due to the unexplained delay.
He suggested that the police complainant in the case did not advance a compelling explanation for why the statements were not filed with the case being before the court for over six years.
Master Gray agreed and discharged the duo.
The case against the men stemmed from the discovery of several packages of cocaine in two suitcases that were expected to be placed on a Caribbean Airlines flight destined for the John F Kennedy International Airport in New York in July 2019.
The suitcases, which were silver and blue, were tagged with fake limited-release tags.
An Airport Authority security officer who was doing a patrol found that the bags looked suspicious and alerted police officers.
Upon checking, the officers discovered several packages of cocaine neatly placed in the suitcases.
Phillips, a security guard, and Baptiste, a Swissport ramp attendant, were charged for the large drug seizure after a month-long investigation by officers from the Special Investigations Unit (SIU).
Both men were granted bail pending the determination of their case.
