Ex-media worker jailed four years, fined $41.4M for cocaine trafficking

Feb 28, 2023 Court Stories, Features / Columnists, News

Kaieteur News – Twenty-six-year-old Zanneel Williams, a former media worker, of Lot 181 Lamaha Gardens, Georgetown, was on Monday sentenced to four years imprisonment and fined $14.4 million for cocaine trafficking.

Williams was sentenced by Magistrate Sunil Scarce at the Diamond/Grove Magistrates’ Court.

On April 22, 2022, at the Cheddi Jagan International Airport (CJIA), Williams was busted with 9.6 kg of cocaine strapped to her body and also in her luggage.

Jailed: Zanneel Williams

On her first court appearance before Magistrate Scarce, Williams had accepted culpability. She was remanded to prison and the Magistrate had ordered a psychiatric evaluation and probation report to be prepared in her favour. However, when Williams returned to court, she changed her plea to not guilty.

Earlier this month when the trial in the matter was set to commence, Williams opted to change her plea back to guilty.

Kaieteur News had reported that Williams alleged accomplices, former Customs Anti-Narcotic Unit (CANU) officer, Anil Sookhoo, 33, of Lot 127 Kuru Kuru, Soesdyke- Linden Highway and Guyana Revenue Authority (GRA) officer, Shameka Caesar, 27, of Lot ZZ, D’Urban Street, Wortmanville, Georgetown, had denied the charge on their first court appearance and were both placed on $750,000 bail each.

According to police reports, on the day in question, Williams was an outgoing passenger at the CJIA destined for the United States. However, the woman was nabbed with a quantity of cocaine in the false sides of her laptop bag. She was then arrested and escorted to CANU’s Headquarters with the narcotics.

A further search of the suspect, which was conducted at the CANU headquarters, revealed a quantity of cocaine strapped to her body. The substance was then tested and came back positive as cocaine, with a total weight of 9.6 kg. The narcotics had a total street value of G$60 million which is equivalent to US$300,000.

Further investigations led to the arrests of the former CANU officer and the GRA officer.

• cocaine, former, media, trafficking, worker, Zanneel Williams