Magistrate Wanda Fortune has dismissed a cocaine trafficking charge against Andre Gomes, known as “Zipper,” initially brought in October 2021. Gomes was arrested alongside another individual during an operation by the Customs Anti-Narcotics Unit (CANU) at Craig Street, Campbellville, Georgetown, where approximately 2 kilograms of cocaine were discovered.
While Gomes’ co-accused had pleaded guilty and has already served his sentence, the prosecution was unprepared when the case was called today. Attorney Siand Dhurjon, representing Gomes, applied for the dismissal of the charge, noting that the hearing was scheduled for evidence presentation, yet no witnesses were available.
Dhurjon objected to the prosecution’s request for more time, emphasizing that the prosecution had ample notice of the trial date and that the court had allocated a full day for the trial. He argued that Gomes should not continue to suffer due to repeated and unexplained delays, especially since the case had been pending for over four years and had been adjourned multiple times for various reasons.
In her ruling, Magistrate Fortune stated she was not satisfied that the prosecution had made sufficient efforts to secure its witnesses for the trial. Consequently, she upheld the defense’s application and dismissed the charge against Gomes.
This dismissal follows another cocaine-related charge against Gomes that was also dismissed by Magistrate Leron Daly in July 2018 due to insufficient evidence. Reports from that time indicated that Gomes was arrested in the same Campbellville area, where CANU ranks discovered over two pounds of cocaine at a residence.
Additionally, Gomes was previously charged with the shooting of a taxi driver outside the Palm Court on Main Street, Georgetown, three years prior; that charge was similarly dismissed for lack of evidence.
