LIAT staff member bailed on latest drug charges

A LIAT flight operations supervisor is now on bail for a second set of drug charges related to the importation of several pounds of cannabis.
Daren Leslie Dunnah was bailed for $70,000 when he was taken before Magistrate Ngaio Emanuel in the All Saints Magistrate’s Court where he was asked to deposit $30,000 towards his immediate release from police custody.
Dunnah, who returns to court on January 9, 2019, needed two Antiguan sureties and must report to the Police Headquarters three times per week.
The 35-year-old Cassada Gardens resident is now charged with possession, importation of cannabis, intent to transfer, being concerned to supply cannabis and making a false declaration to customs in relation to the 8.5 pounds of cannabis found among items he allegedly brought into the country.
The police spent the past three and a half months investigating the matter, trying to find the importer of the items that were reportedly brought in under a false name on June 1, 2018.
Trained K-9 Unit dogs detected the drug among cargo and when lawmen searched the packages they found a box containing the 8.5 pounds of cannabis. No one was arrested, until recently.
When he was charged with this offence this week, Dunnah already had cannabis importation charges pending in the St. John’s Magistrates’ Court against him.
On September 5, law enforcement officials were doing routine package checks with the assistance of the police K-9 Unit in the Customs warehouse when they discovered two pounds of cannabis hidden inside  the panels of a microwave at Deep Water Harbour.
Dunnah’s home was also searched after the bust, and he was charged with four drug offences and making a false declaration to Customs.
A day later, the police, along with specially trained dogs from the K-9 Unit, went to Dunnah’s home armed with a warrant to search for additional contraband. Nothing was found.
He was granted bail in the sum of $10,000 for allegedly smuggling cannabis into the country through the port.
The flight operations supervisor has been working with LIAT for almost 12 years. He goes back to court on November 15 for the charges for the drugs at the port.