Beautiful Virgin Islands

Thursday, Jul 24, 2025

Women Caught With Cannabis, $$ Dodges Prison Time

Women Caught With Cannabis, $$ Dodges Prison Time

Two women from Belmont, West End could count themselves lucky as they avoided up to 24 months at Her Majesty’s Prison in Balsam Ghut after they were found guilty of proceeds of criminal conduct and possession of a controlled drug.
Magistrate Ayanna Baptiste-DaBreo on Monday, November 23, sentenced Caroline Hodge-Clarke 41 and D’Janne Varlark 24, to a term of two years imprisonment, suspended for two years for the offence of possession of a controlled drug, namely 741 grams of cannabis.

In the meantime, for the offence of proceeds of criminal conduct, the women who were also jointly charged received a nine-month custodial sentence also suspended for two years.

The sentences are to run concurrently, which means that they would have spent no more than two years in total behind bars. This also meant that the women would only spend 24 months if they re-commit an offense within the next two years.

“I don’t see an imprisonment would be beneficial to society,” Magistrate DaBreo said, referring to the reason behind the suspended sentences.

She also referred to a letter from Dr. Michael Turnbull, a clinical psychologist, which was written to the court on behalf of the women. In the letter, Dr. Turnbull said, the women are ‘heavy users’ of cannabis, and they also suffer from depression.

The Magistrate said she do not believe Dr. Turnbull would try to mislead the court.

Meanwhile, the magistrate ordered that the $24,980 found in the women’s home would be forfeited to the Crown.

Varlack was also fined $130 for possession of 680 grams of cannabis while her co-accused, Hodge-Clarke, was fined a total of $125 for possession of a small quantity of cannabis.

In default, the women would spend four days for each fine if they do not pay by December 17.

The women were caught on December 7, 2018, in Hannah’s Estate, Tortola by police who were at the time responding to a tip about a firearm being in the possession of Hodge-Clarke.

Instead, the search unearthed the drugs, and later when a search of their home was conducted, the cash was found stashed in a transparent bag behind a mirror in a bedroom.

Defence attorneys Nelson Samuel and Stephen Daniels represented the women.
Newsletter

Related Articles

Beautiful Virgin Islands
0:00
0:00
Close
"Crazy Thing": OpenAI's Sam Altman Warns Of AI Voice Fraud Crisis In Banking
The Podcaster Who Accidentally Revealed He Earns Over $10 Million a Year
Trump Announces $550 Billion Japanese Investment and New Trade Agreements with Indonesia and the Philippines
US Treasury Secretary Calls for Institutional Review of Federal Reserve Amid AI‑Driven Growth Expectations
UK Government Considers Dropping Demand for Apple Encryption Backdoor
Severe Flooding in South Korea Claims Lives Amid Ongoing Rescue Operations
Japanese Man Discovers Family Connection Through DNA Testing After Decades of Separation
Russia Signals Openness to Ukraine Peace Talks Amid Escalating Drone Warfare
Switzerland Implements Ban on Mammography Screening
Japanese Prime Minister Vows to Stay After Coalition Loses Upper House Majority
Pogacar Extends Dominance with Stage Fifteen Triumph at Tour de France
CEO Resigns Amid Controversy Over Relationship with HR Executive
Man Dies After Being Pulled Into MRI Machine Due to Metal Chain in New York Clinic
NVIDIA Achieves $4 Trillion Valuation Amid AI Demand
US Revokes Visas of Brazilian Corrupted Judges Amid Fake Bolsonaro Investigation
U.S. Congress Approves Rescissions Act Cutting Federal Funding for NPR and PBS
North Korea Restricts Foreign Tourist Access to New Seaside Resort
Brazil's Supreme Court Imposes Radical Restrictions on Former President Bolsonaro
Centrist Criticism of von der Leyen Resurfaces as she Survives EU Confidence Vote
Judge Criticizes DOJ Over Secrecy in Dropping Charges Against Gang Leader
Apple Closes $16.5 Billion Tax Dispute With Ireland
Von der Leyen Faces Setback Over €2 Trillion EU Budget Proposal
UK and Germany Collaborate on Global Military Equipment Sales
Trump Plans Over 10% Tariffs on African and Caribbean Nations
Flying Taxi CEO Reclaims Billionaire Status After Stock Surge
Epstein Files Deepen Republican Party Divide
Zuckerberg Faces $8 Billion Privacy Lawsuit From Meta Shareholders
FIFA Pressured to Rethink World Cup Calendar Due to Climate Change
SpaceX Nears $400 Billion Valuation With New Share Sale
Microsoft, US Lab to Use AI for Faster Nuclear Plant Licensing
Trump Walks Back Talk of Firing Fed Chair Jerome Powell
Zelensky Reshuffles Cabinet to Win Support at Home and in Washington
"Can You Hit Moscow?" Trump Asked Zelensky To Make Putin "Feel The Pain"
Irish Tech Worker Detained 100 days by US Authorities for Overstaying Visa
Dimon Warns on Fed Independence as Trump Administration Eyes Powell’s Succession
Church of England Removes 1991 Sexuality Guidelines from Clergy Selection
Superman Franchise Achieves Success with Latest Release
Hungary's Viktor Orban Rejects Agreements on Illegal Migration
Jeff Bezos Considers Purchasing Condé Nast as a Wedding Gift
Ghislaine Maxwell Says She’s Ready to Testify Before Congress on Epstein’s Criminal Empire
Bal des Pompiers: A Celebration of Community and Firefighter Culture in France
FBI Chief Kash Patel Denies Resignation Speculations Amid Epstein List Controversy
Air India Pilot’s Mental Health Records Under Scrutiny
Google Secures Windsurf AI Coding Team in $2.4 Billion Licence Deal
Jamie Dimon Warns Europe Is Losing Global Competitiveness and Flags Market Complacency
South African Police Minister Suspended Amid Organised Crime Allegations
Nvidia CEO Claims Chinese Military Reluctance to Use US AI Technology
Hong Kong Advances Digital Asset Strategy to Address Economic Challenges
Australia Rules Out Pre‑commitment of Troops, Reinforces Defence Posture Amid US‑China Tensions
Martha Wells Says Humanity Still Far from True Artificial Intelligence
×