GEORGE TOWN, Cayman Islands (CMC) —Two Jamaican fishermen caught with more than 167lbs of marijuana on a boat south of the Cayman Islands earlier this year have been jailed after pleading guilty to illicit drug trafficking.

Eric Junior Cunningham, 42, was sentenced to 24 months and Radmond Junior Samuels, 33, to 18 months following a rulingby Justice Emma Peters late last month.

The police report that on March 25, the Cayman Islands Coast Guard intercepted the boat that was 32 nautical miles south of Grand Cayman. Cunningham was operating the vessel while Samuels was the passenger.

The coast guard officers reportedly found nine packages of ganja, a GPS device and a satellite phone.

Both men initially pleaded not guilty in May but changed their pleas three weeks before their scheduled September trial. Cunningham admitted he had agreed to smuggle the drugs after being promised payment of US$5,000, which he never received.

According to a social inquiry report, he is a farmer who had suffered significant hardship, including damage to his home during a previous storm and its complete destruction in Hurricane Melissa.

Samuels had told police he had been threatened by a man known as “Bigs”, who pressured him to take part in the operation. His background included the early loss of both parents, limited education, and ongoing health issues.

Peters accepted that neither man played a leading role in the drug operation, but noted that transporting drugs by sea remains a critical link in the supply chain. Cunningham’s role as the boat operator placed him in the “significant” category, while Samuels’ limited involvement and intimidation placed him in the “lesser” role.

The judge said the sentences were the lowest she could impose while still meeting the need for deterrence, stressing that those tempted by the promise of quick money must have a reason to resist.

“The miserable trade in illegal drugs is such that, whatever the drug and wherever the operation, those who are at the top of the illegal organisations that profit from the trade are often able to hide away, exposing themselves to the most limited extent possible, as they send out others below them to take the risks,” said Peters as she delivered her sentencing decision.

“Whilst those middle managers or workers will, of course profit from the criminality in some way, it is undoubtedly the case that those at the top are making the most whilst exposing themselves the least,” she added. The judge noted that the two men before her were fishermen who were targeted for the sole purpose of getting these drugs to the Cayman Islands.

Since the evidence against the men was overwhelming, they only received a 20 per cent discount for their guilty pleas. However, with time spent on remand since their arrest and the possibility, based on good behaviour, of release after they have served 60 per cent of their sentence, they can expect to be returned to Jamaica early next year.

The court also ordered that the seized drugs be forfeited and destroyed.