Eight US nationals were convicted when they appeared before the St. Ann Parish Court yesterday.
The nationals were arrested for breaches of the Dangerous Drugs Act at a cruise ship pier in St. Ann on Wednesday, November 9 following the seizure of a large quantity of cocaine.
Reports are that all eight persons were arrested after they attempted to smuggle 24 kilograms of cocaine onto a cruise ship from which they had earlier disembarked.
The cocaine was valued at approximately 1.2 million US dollars. That’s over 180 million Jamaican dollars.
The US nationals pleaded guilty to the charges of possession of cocaine and attempting to export cocaine.
Convicted are: 22-year-old mover Jamari Kitchen, 23-year-old day care worker Kaley Hall, 22-year-old football player Javonte Johnson, and 22-year-old hairstylist Ta’kayla Hooks, all from Florida.
The rest include 22-year-old Tyshena Brison and 27-year-old labourer Troy Craig, both of Fort Lauderdale.
Twenty-three-year-old student Yakine Jones and 18-year-old Hailey Lawrence, round out the convicted US nationals.
They are all scheduled to return before the courts on Friday, December 2 for sentencing.
