DPP Pulls the Plug on 536K Drug Case Against Canadian Woman

Charges against a Canadian national found with 67 pounds of cannabis at V.C. Bird International Airport have been withdrawn by the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP), citing medical reasons.

The court questioned the prosecution’s reasoning and was told by the police prosecution that the DPP had sent instructions for the matter to be withdrawn, with medical reasons offered as the sole explanation.

Forty-eight-year-old Roselynee Crisostomo had been facing several serious charges — including possession of cannabis, possession with intent to transfer, being concerned in the supply of cannabis, drug trafficking, and importation of cannabis — following a joint drug interdiction operation at the airport on Tuesday, March 10.

The Canadian citizen had previously appeared before Chief Magistrate Ngaio Emanuel and had expressed an interest in pleading guilty.

However, given the significant quantity of drugs involved, the matter had been referred for committal proceedings, with the court ordering that it be fast-tracked.

The charges stemmed from a coordinated operation in which officers from the Narcotics Department, the Special Services Unit (SSU), the K-9 Unit, and the Customs Enforcement Unit conducted checks on arriving passengers at approximately 4:30 pm.

Crisostomo, who had arrived aboard Air Canada flight AC1832 from Toronto, was reportedly stopped and searched, leading officers to discover 61 vacuum-sealed packages of cannabis across two suitcases. The drugs were valued at $536,000 EC.