Five walk free in major BVI cocaine case

Five men accused in connection with a major cocaine seizure in BVI waters have walked free after Senior Magistrate Tamia Richards upheld a no-case submission and dismissed the charges against them. Those freed of the charges of importation of a controlled drug and possession of a controlled drug with intent to supply are Cesar Diaz Abrahim and Ronald James of Trinidad & Tobago; Joel Santana Santos and Francisco Mejia Ortiz of the Dominican Republic; and Candido Rois Quezada of St Kitts and Nevis. The men were among six people arrested after police intercepted the cargo vessel C Elizabeth II near Virgin Gorda in December 2025.

Their trial began in May, with each pleading not guilty, except for the sixth accused — the boat captain. Police witnesses testified that officers approached the vessel during the early morning hours of December 9 last year after spotting it at sea. Officers said they observed several people moving rapidly on deck and throwing packages overboard. Police subsequently recovered 32 bags from the sea. Six people were found aboard the vessel when it was taken to Port Purcell , while three additional bricks of suspected cocaine were reportedly discovered aboard. However, attorney E. Leroy Jones, representing the five defendants, argued that prosecutors failed to establish that his clients knew about or had control of the drugs. A major issue…