Mom, dad and son remanded over $300M drug bust

August 23, 2011 | By KNews | Filed Under News 

The three Haslington New Scheme residents who allegedly had over $300M worth of cocaine in their home were yesterday arraigned at the Vigilance Magistrate’s Court, and appeared before Magistrate Sherdel Isaacs.
Leonard Bacchus, his wife, Indranie Bacchus, and their 15-year-old son, were all charged in connection with a 67.2 kg cocaine find at their residence.
The trio pleaded not guilty to the charges which stated that on August 16, 2011 at Enmore, East Coast Demerara, they had in their possession 125 twelve-gauge cartridges and 152 .32 rounds of ammunition without being holders of firearm and ammunition licences at the time.

Leonard Bacchus

Secondly they were charged with having in their possession 67 kilogrammes 296 grams of cocaine for the purpose of trafficking.
Attorney at law Vic Puran in his unsuccessful bid to secure bail for his clients started off by requesting that Police Prosecutor Robert Clement disclose the short facts. However the prosecutor stated that this was not mandatory at this point of the case.
According to the lawyer, the prosecution does not have sufficient evidence for a conviction. He added that his clients’ appearance at court does not necessarily mean that they were taken lawfully.
The lawyer stated that one of the charges was bad in law, despite the fact that the police sought the assistance of the Director of Public Prosecutions.
At this point, the magistrate asked Puran if he could state what the irregularity in the charge was, but the lawyer asserted that that was not his job.
Puran also questioned the surrounding facts that the police have in order to remand his three clients. The court was told that oral and written statements were given to the police by Leonard Bacchus. His 15-year-old son, according to Puran, did not confess to anything.
The lawyer opined that the only evidence that the police have is the fact that the Kunds were found in the Bacchus’s home.
However Puran disclosed that an investigating rank has given a sworn statement indicating that he saw the three defendants placing the cocaine into the Kunds.
The lawyer questioned which one of the two versions the police would use during the trial.
Police Prosecutor Robert Clement in his response, stated that no special reasons were given by the lawyer as to why bail should be granted to his clients.
According to Clement, the three accused were charged under Section 5A1 of the Narcotics Act, which clearly states that special reasons must be given to the court before bail is considered. An application was then made for the trio to be remanded to prison and for the matter to be transferred to the Cove and John Magistrate’s Court.
This application was granted by the magistrate. The three accused are expected to make their next court appearance on August 29.
Police said that the Bacchus family had been under surveillance for three months prior to the discovery of the cocaine.