Guyanese fingered in drug courier ring gets one year in plea deal

A Guyanese man arrested with over US$35,000 in undeclared cash at JFK Airport, in the US back

Vilton Bourne

in February 2014, has been sentenced to a year and a day on a cocaine conspiracy charge.
The judgment was handed down last month in a New York court against Vilton Bourne.
Bourne, in a deal with US prosecutors, had agreed to plead guilty to one count of conspiracy to import cocaine.
For his jail time, Bourne has until June 8th to surrender, as he was on bail at the time of his sentencing last month.
The court has made final the seizure of US$35,577 in cash that had been taken from the Guyanese man when he was arrested in 2014.
Bourne had faced up to nine years for the charges.
On August 18, last, Bourne pleaded guilty, via a plea agreement, to conspiring to import cocaine into the US.
The documents explained that the defendant participated in a cocaine importation conspiracy in which persons imported cocaine from a Guyanese supplier. The cocaine was disguised as various food items. In conversations, the persons involved in the conspiracy would refer to the cocaine as gold.
Bourne was said to be a facilitator of couriers for the conspiracy. He was also involved in smuggling cash to Guyana.