7 News Belize

Farmer Caught Growing Weed
posted (August 9, 2013)
In the last segment we told you about the police officer who has been charged with drug trafficking. While that police officer waits to be arraigned, 43 year-old farmer Owen Baptist is spending the first night of a 3 year sentence after he pleaded guilty to marijuana cultivation and drug trafficking.

According to Police, acting on intelligence, they visited his farm in Isabella Bank on Wednesday, where they discovered 37 marijuana plants, and a large bag of dry marijuana.

The bag weighed in at 2.7 kilos – or almost 6 pounds – and as a result, he was charged with marijuana cultivation and drug trafficking.

He was arraigned today before Magistrate Leslie Hamilton, where he pleaded guilty to both charges. Magistrate Hamilton sentenced him to 3 years in prison, and a $10,000 fine for each count. If he defaults on those payments he will spend an additional 3 years in prison.

The 2 prison sentences will run concurrently, so he will only spend 3 years if he is able to pay those fines.

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