Simon Gold Smith answer to three charges of conspiracy to commit felony, unlawfully possession and trafficking of contraband drugs contrary to

Simon Gold Smith, a British citizen was on Monday 18th February 2008 arraigned before Magistrate A.M Kamanda of Court No. 2 in Freetown to answer to three count charges of conspiracy to commit felony, unlawfully possession and trafficking of contraband drugs contrary to laws of Sierra Leone. According to the particulars of offence, the accused was arrested on the 8th February 2008 with 78 parcels of cocaine at the Lungi International Airport with intention to traffic the said drugs out of the country to London onboard Brussels airline. Considering the gravity of the matter, the accused was not allowed to say anything in court. However, his Defence Counsel, Lawyer Robert Kowa applied for bail for his client with the assurance that he would always be presented in Court for subsequent hearings.
The Magistrate used his discretion. Given the nature of the offence, and for the fact that the accused is not a Sierra Leonean and not a resident of Freetown, he refused to grant him bail. He was then sent on remand to the maximum prisons at Pademba Road. The matter was adjourned to Thursday 21st February 2008.

29-year old Sierra Leone national and 32-year old Nigerian

A 29-year old Sierra Leone national and 32-year old Nigerian travelling together on route to their homes in the London area were stopped by HMRC officers after arriving on a flight from Istanbul. HMRC has issued a statement today on a separate case in which officers arrested two women at Manchester Airport this week seizing about 14 kilos of cocaine in baggage with a street value of approximately £840,000. The women appeared at Manchester Magistrates charged with the illegal importation of Class A drugs this morning and have been remanded in custody