Ganja found in woman’s tights

A 41-year-old woman wept openly in the Kingston and St Andrew Parish Court on Tuesday, after she confessed to having more than 10 pounds of ganja in her possession for cross border transport.

Prosecutors contend that the defendant, Shoshana Francis, went to the Norman Manley International Airport in Kingston with intentions to board a flight. Security guards noticed irregularities with Francis, who was in a wheelchair. A secondary search was conducted and Francis was found wearing a pair of tights under her clothing. Parcels of ganja were sewn into the tights, in the region of the buttocks, thighs and the fold of her belly. She was found with 10 lbs and 8.4 ounces.

"There is no justification for my actions but I can't get no work Your Honour. My mother is in the hospital and her lungs are punctured," the woman said, her voice trembling as tears streamed down her face.

Francis explained to Senior Parish Judge Lori-Anne Cole-Montaque that she was willing to support her family by any means, and for that reason, she agreed to transport the drugs.

"I would do anything Your Honour," she said. Francis said that she just got back her teenage son from Child Protection and Family Services Agency after spending four years in custody for illegal possession of firearm. She was acquitted in the Supreme Court.

"I went to Barbados once and I sold crafts (necklaces and chains) and I met a man. He was the one who told me what to do and who to go to," she shared of the illicit scheme.

Francis pleaded guilty to conspiracy to export ganja, taking steps preparatory to export ganja, possession of and dealing in ganja.

"Look what you get yourself into," the judge chided the defendant. Francis was made the subject of a fingerprint order and was remanded in custody until February 22 when she is to be sentenced.