Courier driver sent to jail for possession of drug

A DHL courier driver has been jailed for a year with hard labour by the Mt Hagen court for possession of drug.
Benny Livinai, a 30-year-old father of two from Samarai’s Kaubwaga in Milne Bay, was found guilty of having 5.4kg of marijuana.
Magistrate Jacinta Doa said that the maximum penalty for people found guilty of marijuana possession was a term not exceeding two years and a minimum of not less than three months.
“Since you are a first time offender, married with two children, and have shown remorse in court, I am deducting a year for you to serve in Baisu jail,” she added.
Livinai who worked for the courier company based at Kagamuga airport was arrested by police on March 12 for trying to deliver the drug in a DHL package to Kokopo, East New Britain.
On the delivery note, he wrote a pair of shoe and two string bags but other DHL employees opened the package to check and found the three packets of marijuana.
Livinai initially pleaded not guilty to the charge on March 12 but changed his changed his plea to guilty on March 27.
He initially told the court that it was not his drug, adding that a man came to his house and gave him the package to deliver, and paid cash.
Livinai said he kept the cash and used his bank card to pay for the air freight cost and was caught.
Prosecutor Sam Nili told The National outside the court that this was a warning to other people trying to traffic marijuana via courier and air services.
He also commended the court for imposing a tough penalty and that “this should serve as a warning to others” who may attempt to smuggle marijuana.