ONE-MINUTE READS ...News from across Jamaica

Drug convict loses cash to State

Fifty-year-old Marvin Locke, a painter, was sentenced in the Kingston and St Andrew Parish Court for possession of criminal property.

Locke had pleaded not guilty to the charge on November 22.

The sentencing stems from an investigation by the Firearms and Narcotics Investigation Division (FNID), which seized 134 grams of crack cocaine, J$3,718,950 and US$430 from Locke's residence in Kingston 10 in January 2022. Locke was charged with possession of and dealing in cocaine, as well as possession of criminal property.

Locke pleaded guilty to the drug charges and was sentenced accordingly. The FNID, working in colloboration with the Financial Investigations Division, filed an application for forfeiture of Locke's assets, including the seized cash. After a trial, Locke was found guilty of possession of criminal property and sentenced to six months' imprisonment at hard labour, suspended for 18 months. He was also ordered to forfeit the money to the Crown.

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Man charged for cybercrime

The Major Organised Crime and Anti-Corruption Agency has charged 25-year-old Garrick Lewis following his arrest last Tuesday in connection with a sophisticated phishing scam that has defrauded the National Commercial Bank of over $47 million.

Allegations are that between April and June 2022, Garrick, who is suspected of being part of a wider organised criminal syndicate, helped to illegally access funds from a number of bank accounts via an online phishing scam.

The stolen money was subsequently transferred to various beneficiary accounts, which have since been used to withdraw the funds or further transfer them to other banking institutions.

Garrick was charged last Friday with the offences of acquisition of criminal property, engaging in a transaction involving criminal property, facilitating the use of criminal property, and receiving stolen property.

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JUTC extends into St Thomas

The state-run Jamaica Urban Transit Company (JUTC) extended its operations into St Thomas yesterday, with two buses leaving from Yallahs and Morant Bay, respectively.

Acting Managing Director of the JUTC, Owen Ellington, expressed delight at the extension of the service into the eastern parish.

"I am feeling good for the citizens of Morant Bay. We would like to really make a difference in terms of how they are transported from here to Kingston and back. We are offering a reliable, safe [and] affordable service," he said.

Prior to adding buses to the Kingston to Morant Bay and Kingston to Yallahs routes, the JUTC operated on the Bull Bay to Kingston route, which included the 11 Miles section of St Thomas.

The buses will run throughout the day up to 7:50 p.m. In Morant Bay, it will leave from Wharf Road, outside Colonel Cove, and make another stop at the Morant Bay Bus Park on Church Street. In Yallahs, it will leave Yallahs Square and then make a pickup at Albion. Both buses will terminate at North Parade in downtown Kingston, where they will reload for return trips.

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More than two million now on voters' list

A total of 20,432 names were added to the voters' list, bringing Jamaica's total number of registered voters to 2,062,000.

The updated list was published, as scheduled, on November 30. The newly registered voters are now eligible to vote in future elections and referenda.

The Electoral Office of Jamaica (EOJ) said new voters will be able to collect their voter ID cards by the end of December at the constituency where they were registered.

The next voters' list will be published on May 31.

General election is due by next September. The names of 1,913,410 persons were on the voter's list that was used for the September 2020 general election.