Bestwood woman used mum's address to help import £48,000 of cannabis from the Caribbean

A Bestwood woman who used her mother's address to import up to £48,000 of cannabis from the Caribbean has been spared a prison sentence, a court has heard.
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Jaurdan Scarlett helped Orvil Brown to import just under 5 kgs of the class B drug between September 2015 and June 2021, said prosecutor Eddy Leonard.

Brown also imported just under half a kilo of cocaine, valued between £15,000 and £24,000, between February 2017 and June 2021.

The cannabis had an estimated value of £20,000 to £48,000, depending on how it was sold on.

Read the latest stories from Nottingham Crown Court.Read the latest stories from Nottingham Crown Court.
Read the latest stories from Nottingham Crown Court.

"A number of addresses were used over the years by both of them, using false names," said Ms Leonard.

The drugs were concealed in parcels containing clothing and ashtrays, she said, and there were also separate "innocent" parcels that gave an "air or legitimacy."

The packages were sent from the Bahamas, the Cayman Islands and Jamaica, and some were intercepted by UK Border Force officers.

Brown sent £34,000 to four people in Jamaica, and Scarlett sent over £9,000, Nottingham Crown Court heard on Wednesday.

Brown has one previous conviction for producing cannabis and Scarlett has one for a dissimilar matter, Ms Leonard said.

Shannon English, mitigating, said Brown was remanded 13 months ago and has already served the equivalent of a 25-month sentence in "difficult conditions."

Steve Gosnell, mitigating, said Scarlett has served the equivalent of seven months on curfew, including 12 days in prison, and pleaded guilty before a trial.

She has caring responsibilities for her two children and there was a realistic prospect of her rehabilitation. Scarlett played a “lesser role,” Mr Gosnell told the court, and sought to persuade the judge to suspend any sentence.

Brown, 54, of Pine View, Radford, admitted conspiracy to import class A and B drugs at the first opportunity, and Scarlett, 32, of Arnside Road, Bestwood, admitted importing class B drugs, before a trial.

Sentencing Brown to five years in prison, Judge Julie Warburton told him: "It has been accepted that you involved your co-accused."

Scarlett received a 12 month sentence, suspended for one year, with 20 rehabilitation days and 120 hours unpaid work.

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