By Latrishka Thomas
Two Gray’s Farm men now owe the state money after they were found in possession of crack cocaine.
On December 17, Shawn Jones was found with 2.3 grams of the drug in his vehicle.
The police were executing a search warrant on the home of another man but found Jones on the premises.
Upon searching his person, they found car keys and a sum of money.
With his permission, they searched his vehicle which was parked at the other side of the building and found a transparent bag with 15 pieces of aluminum foil concealed in the back of the front passenger seat.
Jones and the drugs were taken to the narcotics department where the substance was weighed and field tested in his presence.
He told the officers “I don’t know who put it there”, but when the charge was put to him on Monday, he pleaded guilty to possessing the drug, which was valued at $300.
Despite admitting guilt, Jones told the court, “I don’t sell drugs. I’m a hard-working citizen of Antigua and Barbuda; I think I was set up.”
Magistrate Conliffe Clarke then asked why he pleaded guilty and he said, “It was found in my car.”
Jones was then fined $1,000.
Meanwhile, Jessie Henry, the owner of the home where Jones was at the time of the search, was found with one gram of crack cocaine.
While the search warrant was being read to him, he tossed a small container behind his bed.
That container was retrieved and eight pieces of foil containing crack was inside.
He told the officers that the crack cocaine, which carried a street value of $200, was “fuh me fuh smoke”.
Henry admitted he was guilty of the offence and was fined $700.