A Birmingham sound engineer who brought cocaine into Jersey while travelling to work at the Weekender festival has been sentenced to 120 hours of community service – after claiming he did not realise he was entering a separate jurisdiction and thought he was guilty only of possession, not importation.
The Magistrate’s Court heard that 44-year-old Edward Charles Lowe arrived at Jersey Airport on 3 July on a flight from Luton Aiport.
Advocate Sophie Lister, prosecuting, said that when detained by Customs officers he began fidgeting with his rucksack.
One of the officers subsequently found a cling-film bag in a side pocket of the bag containing 1.25 grams of cocaine, which would have had an estimated street value of between £150 and £250.
Advocate Lister added that Lowe had a previous conviction in Birmingham for possession of cocaine.
Advocate Sarah Dale, defending, said Lowe had not realised that by coming to Jersey he was entering a separate jurisdiction, so believed the offence was possession of drugs rather than importation.
Advocate Dale added that the small quantity was for Lowe’s personal use rather than for selling on and so they presented an “extremely minimal” risk of harm to the Jersey community.
She also pointed out that Lowe had voluntarily returned to the island from England to attend his court appearance.
Relief Magistrate David Le Cornu sentenced Lowe to community service and allowed him to carry this out in the UK.