THE Ba Magistrate’s Court has convicted Alivereti Nabulivou Kunaveli of possessing 2.8 grams of marijuana.
Magistrate Namrata Mishra delivered the judgment on September 18, finding Kunaveli guilty of unlawful possession of illicit drugs at Namau, Ba, on May 21, 2021.
The court heard that police intercepted a red carrier driven by a hired carrier driver following information about drug transportation from Navala.
Officers found Kunaveli sitting in the front passenger seat with a white sack and a bag containing dried marijuana leaves placed between his legs while holding a cane knife.
In his defence, Kunaveli claimed the drugs belonged to the carrier driver. However, Magistrate Mishra accepted the driver’s unchallenged evidence that Kunaveli had hired him and returned 25 minutes later carrying the sack.
Magistrate Mishra ruled that the prosecution had proven beyond a reasonable doubt that Kunaveli had custody and control of the illicit drugs, rejecting the defence’s claim that the driver was an interested witness attempting to shift blame.
