A 54-year-old St James businessman convicted of drug smuggling charges five years ago has been ordered by the court to pay over J$11 million to the Government within six months.
Ewart Fowler s trouble with the law started on February 7, 2014, when he and his wife were about to board a flight at the Donald Sangster International Airport destined to Canada, according to a statement from the Financial Investigations Division (FID).
The couple was later intercepted by members of the Jamaica Constabulary Force attached to the Transnational Crime and Narcotics Division (TCND).
Following a detailed search of both persons, it was revealed that they were transporting cocaine wrapped in transparent plastic in concealed compartments under their outfits.
The police are describing as a major success the result of a case in which a 35-year-old man, considered to be a major player in the lottery scamming scheme, was stripped of property valued at close to eight million and US$6,230.
The man identified as Algrando Stewart of a Brissette Road address in Cambridge, St. James was also ordered to pay over $13 million to the crown following his guilty plea to possession of identity information in the St James Circuit Court in December 2020.
The police said the man who first identified himself as a carpenter, was ordered to pay $3 million out of the initial $13 million sum within a month and the balance over the following 24 months.