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Wadadli Case Files, Saint John's (2026)

01/06/2026

Drug trafficking Charges Dropped Against Jamaican Businessman
The Director of Public Prosecutions today withdrew all charges against Francis Young, a Jamaican national who had been at the centre of a major drug trafficking case involving a $372,000 cannabis seizure at the Deep Water Harbour.

Young stood before Chief Magistrate Ngaio Emanuel as attorney Wendel Alexander — appearing on behalf of counsel Andrew Okola, who represents Young — was told by police prosecution that the DPP had transmitted written instructions for the charges against his client to be withdrawn. No reasons were disclosed.

The decision closes Young's chapter in a case that began on May 9th, 2025, when a coordinated operation between the Narcotics Department and Customs officials at the Deep Water Harbour resulted in the discovery of 62 vacuum-sealed packages of cannabis concealed within a brown cardboard container in the cargo shed. The haul weighed 62 pounds in total and carried an estimated street value of $372,000. Young and his co-accused, Nadeem Brandon Doumith of Crosbies, were arrested and charged shortly thereafter.

The five charges both men faced were identical: conspiracy to commit drug trafficking, possession of cannabis, possession of cannabis with intent to transfer, importation of cannabis, and being concerned in the supply of cannabis. At their initial appearance before Acting Chief Magistrate Dexter Wason, Young was released on bail while Doumith was remanded to His Majesty's Prison.

Unlike Young, Doumith has not had his charges withdrawn. Alexander who represents Doumith directly, has been given 28 days to file and serve written submissions on his client's behalf. The prosecution will have a further 28 days to respond. The matter has been adjourned to 8th August 2026.

Young has made Antigua his home for the past four years, residing here with his wife and three minor children. He is said to be the owner of a business that provides employment to a number of Antiguan nationals. Prior to his arrest, it is said that Young had been actively pursuing an application for citizenship under the Citizenship by Investment Programme.

27/05/2026

A drug trafficking case that appeared to be heading toward a guilty plea has been withdrawn.

The Director of Public Prosecutions, this morning, is said to have instructed police prosecutors to withdraw all charges against Roselynee Crisostomo, a 48-year-old Canadian national who was allegedly caught red-handed with over 67 pounds of cannabis at V.C. Bird International Airport.

When the Chief Magistrate Ngaio Emanuel pressed for an explanation, police prosecutors cited medical reasons.

On March 10, Crisostomo had arrived in Antigua aboard Air Canada flight AC1832 from Toronto when a coordinated team of narcotics officers, SSU personnel, K-9 units, and customs enforcement stopped her for a search. What they reportedly found inside her two suitcases was 61 vacuum-sealed packages of cannabis valued at $536,000 EC.

She had previously appeared in court unrepresented and, notably, had signalled a willingness to plead guilty. Given the scale of the offense, however, the court determined the matter required committal proceedings and moved to fast-track the case.
Then came this morning's twist.

21/05/2026

The police say they have launched a formal investigation into a social media post allegedly made by one of its serving officers — a post appears to have been made in the wake of the guilty verdict handed down against popular local entertainer Jesse Fyah.

Harrison Horsford, known widely by his stage name Jesse Fyah, was this week found guilty of indecent assault and serious indecency by a jury.

It is against this backdrop that the social media post by a police officer has caused significant public concern.

The Police Administration confirmed the matter is under active investigation and issued a formal apology to the victim and to all those affected or offended by the officer's conduct.

20/05/2026

Justice John Spencer has handed down a four-year prison sentence to a Sutherlands man whose home was found to contain one of the largest personal caches of ammunition uncovered in a single residential search.

Daquan George, who had no fi****ms licence, pleaded guilty to two charges last year — possession of a firearm and possession of ammunition. The ammunition charge carried the heavier penalty of four years, while two years were imposed for possession of the firearm and magazines. Both sentences will run concurrently.

The case dates back to the early morning of July 31, 2025, when the Guns and Gangs Suppression Unit descended on George's Sutherlands residence armed with a search warrant. During a sweep of a washroom at the front of the property, officers came across a black shopping bag sitting on containers in the centre of the room. Inside was a collection of 140 rounds of ammunition spanning multiple calibres, six firearm magazines and a pen gun. George, then 30, acknowledged on the spot that the items were his.

His explanation, however, raised more questions than it answered. George told investigators he had stumbled upon the bag along a shortcut roughly a month earlier and taken it home with the intention of turning a quick profit — though he later added that he had since decided to throw it away.

The matter first came before Senior Magistrate Ngaio Emanuel in December, where George entered his guilty plea.
Rather than proceeding to sentence, the magistrate took the significant step of referring the case to the High Court — invoking for the first time a provision introduced under the Fi****ms Amendment Act of 2024.

Fi****ms cases of this nature have historically been resolved in the lower court, but the magistrate determined the volume and variety of weapons and ammunition made the matter too serious for the magistracy to adequately address.

19/05/2026

A jury has taken less than an hour to find one of Antigua's popular entertainers guilty of indecent assault and serious indecency.

Harrison Horsford — known widely by his stage name Jesse Fyah — was remanded into custody immediately after the verdict was delivered before Justice Ann Marie Smith. A social inquiry report has been ordered and sentencing is set for July 1. George Lake represented the defendant throughout the proceedings and Curtis Cornelius presented the Crown's case.

The offences date back to October 27, 2020, when the complainant — a young woman in her early twenties — encountered Horsford, who was 33 at the time, and accepted a ride in his vehicle. The two were not strangers; the court heard they had known each other for years and had previously shared a casual relationship.

What began as a straightforward offer of transportation quickly became something else entirely. Horsford first stopped at his workplace before, without explanation, driving in the direction of Bolans. When the complainant questioned where he was going, he told her he needed to meet a man at Darkwood about a billboard. She agreed to accompany him.

When they arrived at Darkwood, Horsford got out of the vehicle and looked around. There was no man. There was no billboard meeting. He returned to the car.

Horsford began making unwanted advances — kissing the complainant without her consent as she fought him off. When she resisted, he grabbed her by the throat. He exposed and touched her body without her consent and forcibly touched her privately, telling her she belonged to him. Throughout, the complainant continued to resist and demand to be taken home.

Instead, Horsford told her to get out and walk.

Alone on the roadside, the complainant flagged down a passing vehicle. The woman who stopped and gave her a lift later gave evidence in court, telling the jury that the complainant was in tears, visibly distressed, and clutching her clothing as she got into the car. She was taken directly to the Johnson Point Police Station.

Horsford gave an unsworn statement — meaning he could not be cross-examined — in which he painted an entirely different picture of events. He said he had spotted the complainant standing in the rain felt compelled to help. He said the two had a friendly conversation during which he offered to assist her in finding a job and asked her to send him a resume.

According to Horsford, the complainant then asked him for $3,000. He said he declined, dropped her at her destination, went to his office, and had no further contact with her that day. He told the court the first indication he had that anything was wrong came that evening, when the complainant sent him a message on Facebook accusing him of r**e. His response, he said, was to warn her not to spread rumours or he would have his lawyer write to her.

The jury did not believe him.

After deliberating for less than an hour, they returned guilty verdicts on both counts. Horsford was taken into custody where he remains ahead of his sentencing on July 1.

19/05/2026

A Bendals man has pleaded guilty to unlawful possession of a firearm and ammunition before the Magistrate's Court following his arrest at a police checkpoint this month.

Wakeme Rodney, 32, of Bendals village, entered a guilty plea to one count of possession of an unlicensed firearm — a Beretta APX 9mm pistol — and one count of possession of seven 9mm rounds of ammunition without holding a valid firearm user's licence.

According to facts presented before the court, on May 14, officers conducting a vehicle checkpoint operation on Bendals Main Road stopped a truck driven by Rodney after observing that he was not wearing a seatbelt.

With the consent of the occupants, a search of the vehicle was carried out, during which officers discovered a grey and black pistol concealed inside a black Adidas side bag on the floor of the front passenger side.

When asked whether either occupant held a firearm user's licence, both replied in the negative. When further questioned as to the ownership of the weapon, Rodney stated: "I'm sorry, I was going to turn it in," adding that he had found the firearm on Big Creek main road, in the vicinity of Masonry Product.

Rodney appeared before Chief Magistrate Ngaio Emanuel on Monday represented by attorney Lawrence Daniel. After pleading guilty, Rodney was remanded and the matter adjourned to May 27 for sentencing.

19/05/2026

Three individuals are in police custody tonight following a series of alleged fraudulent transactions detected at a local financial institution, the Royal Police Force of Antigua and Barbuda has confirmed.

The incidents were reported to the Criminal Investigations Department on separate occasions between May 12th and May 18th, 2026, after irregular and unauthorized transactions were discovered across different branches of the same bank.

Police launched investigations following those reports, and the three suspects were subsequently taken into custody after officers visited a number of locations and gathered information critical to the ongoing probe.

The police have not yet disclosed the identities of those arrested, the name of the financial institution involved, the value of the alleged fraudulent transactions, or how many separate incidents are currently under investigation.

All three suspects remain in custody as investigations continue.

14/05/2026

Bus driver, Kenroy Graham will be spending 18 months behind bars for inappropriately touching a 12 year-old girl.

In February, a jury found Graham guilty of indecent assault against the minor which he lured off-route while operating a public bus.

The trial heard that on April 1, 2022, the victim boarded Graham's bus at the West Bus Station heading to Coolidge. When she disembarked at her stop, she hit her head and dropped her headphones. Graham agreed to let her search for it after he dropped off remaining passengers.

After dropping his last passenger, Graham deviated from his regular route, turning down a side road and pulling over. He then approached the girl and began questioning her about her living situation and age before rubbing her upper thigh. He told her he wanted her to be his girlfriend and requested to perform oral s*x on her.

The girl told him she needed to get home. Graham returned to his seat, and as she was leaving, asked her to keep the incident secret. She ran home and immediately contacted her aunt. A police report was filed the same day.

During the trial, Graham denied the allegations, claiming in an unsworn statement that the incident was a setup by someone attempting to remove him from the bus route to secure more work. He provided no further details or evidence linking any third party to the child.

The jury rejected his defence and returned a guilty verdict.

Today, Justice Ann Marie Smith sent him to prison to spend less than two years. The maximum sentence for this offence is 5 years.

13/05/2026

Three men appeared before the Magistrate’s Court on Wednesday and were sentenced to prison terms in separate firearm matters, with one offender receiving a one-year sentence for his second fi****ms conviction.

The matters were heard before Chief Magistrate Ngaio Emanuel, who applied the Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court sentencing guidelines in each case, assessing the seriousness of the offences, aggravating and mitigating factors, and the timing of the guilty pleas before arriving at the final sentences.

Twenty-seven-year-old Villa resident Datwan Simon received the longest sentence — twelve months in prison — after pleading guilty to possession of a black and silver 1911 C**t 9mm pistol without a Firearm User’s Licence. Simon was represented by attorney Lawrence Daniel.

Police discovered the firearm hidden inside a white sock beneath Simon’s home during the ex*****on of a search warrant at his Villa residence on April 16, 2026. When cautioned, Simon immediately admitted ownership of the weapon. During a police interview, he also disclosed that he had possessed the firearm for approximately one year.

The court treated the extended period of possession as an aggravating factor. Simon’s prior conviction for firearm and ammunition offences in February 2020 further increased the sentence. However, the court also considered his cooperation with police and expressions of remorse before applying a one-third reduction for his early guilty plea. After credit for twenty-three days spent on remand, Simon has eleven months remaining to serve.

Meanwhile, 26-year-old Greenbay Hill resident Ahjahnae Nicholas was sentenced to eleven months in prison after pleading guilty to possession of a Mossberg 12-gauge shotgun.

According to the facts, police officers armed with a search warrant arrived at Nicholas’s home in the early hours of April 10, 2026. Before the search began, Nicholas informed officers that a firearm was beneath his bed. Police subsequently recovered the shotgun wrapped in a striped sheet inside a black plastic bag. Nicholas claimed he had found the weapon in nearby bushes.

A major aggravating factor in the case was that the shotgun’s serial number had been removed, preventing investigators from tracing its origin or possible links to previous crimes. Still, the court noted that Nicholas was a first-time offender who cooperated fully with police and demonstrated remorse. Statements from both parents describing him as hardworking and supportive of a sibling with mental challenges were also taken into account before the sentence was reduced for his early guilty plea. After credit for thirty days spent on remand, Nicholas has ten months left to serve.

In a separate matter, 21-year-old farmer Joel Isaac of Green Bay was sentenced to nine months in prison after pleading guilty to possession of a modified black and orange flare gun and one round of 9mm ammunition. Isaac was represented by attorney Warren Cassell.

The charges stemmed from an incident at Nut Grove on July 27, 2025, when police found Isaac in possession of the modified flare gun and ammunition. The court heard that Isaac attempted to hide the weapon beneath an old house after police arrived, acting on instructions from a friend who had given him the firearm.

Chief Magistrate Emanuel noted several mitigating factors in Isaac’s favour, including that he was a first-time offender, cooperated fully with police, and showed genuine remorse. The court also considered his youth and lack of maturity, along with positive character references from his stepfather, who described him as respectful and hardworking. After reductions for mitigation and an early guilty plea, Isaac was sentenced to nine months in prison. Having already spent six months on remand, he has three months remaining to serve.

The fi****ms recovered in all three matters were ordered confiscated and lodged at the armoury.

12/05/2026

A Jamaican man has pleaded guilty to trafficking nearly a quarter of a million dollars worth of cannabis.

Damar Sappleton stood before High Court Judge John Spencer earlier today and entered the plea to a charge of drug trafficking — more than a year after the seizure that led to his arrest.

Officers from the police and customs division uncovered 41 pounds of cannabis, valued at an estimated $246,000, concealed inside two boxes at Deep Water Harbour on March 8, 2024. Sappleton, who had been residing in Bendals, was arrested and charged shortly after.

Today he was sent back to prison to await sentencing on June 5th.

Wadadli Case Files

01/06/2026

27/05/2026

21/05/2026

20/05/2026

19/05/2026

19/05/2026

19/05/2026

14/05/2026

13/05/2026

12/05/2026

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