Two drug traffickers sentenced by the Supreme Court |07 June 2013

The convictions were in respect of the possession of four kilograms of cannabis and a small quantity of heroin which was found at their home in Forêt Noire. The drugs had a potential street value of R2 million.

Dean Jimmy Lawrence, a 35-year-old freelance skipper and his partner, Marie Celine Leon, a 41-year-old unemployed mother of an eight-year-old child, pleaded not guilty to the charges.
At the end of a five-day long keenly contested trial before the Supreme Court, both were convicted of the charges and sentenced.

The sentences, which date from the time of their arrest, will run concurrently. This means that both will serve fifteen years in prison.

The drugs were discovered during the course of an NDEA midnight surveillance operation at the home of the accused. The drugs were discovered concealed in the bedroom of the house following a comprehensive search.

“The recovery of such a significant consignment of drugs effectively removed four thousand separate deals from the streets. Such seizures have a significant impact on the supply situation by denying the suppliers and the dealers of the cash that such transactions would have realised had they been allowed to go ahead,” says a communiqué from the NDEA.

This seizure was part of a total seizure of drugs in 2011 that had a street value of R22.02 million and represents a significant inroad into reducing the supply situation of drugs in Seychelles.

“The NDEA continues to work with its partners and stakeholders in seeking to counteract the supply and demand for drugs in the country. The agency has recently completed a schools programme for all second level schools. During the course of this programme the children were given instruction and advice on the dangers and implications of drug abuse,” says the communiqué.