Andre Tiago Caldeira Freitas (29), was jailed for three months after he was caught with an inhaler containing 8 ml of methadone concealed in his luggage as well as one Tramadol tablet. The court heard that the methadone had a street value of £16.
Freitas was stopped by Customs officers at Jersey Airport on Thursday 5 October at 9.45 am after he got off a flight from Birmingham. He had initially flown from Madeira.
Centenier Richard Vibert said that Freitas was travelling with his girlfriend, who was between seven and eight months pregnant.
Freitas told officers that he had come to Jersey to look for work but admitted having no money and being a methadone user. He also said that he had taken heroin and cocaine two days before he travelled.
In applying for the court to recommend deportation, legal adviser Advocate Chris Baglin submitted that the risk of Freitas reoffending was high. ‘He has got no ties to the Island and no one here depends on him,’ he said. The court was also told that Freitas had previously been prosecuted for two robberies.
Advocate Jane Grace, defending, said that the amount of drugs involved was very small. She said that Freitas had struggled with heroin addiction in the past and did not realise that methadone was illegal in Jersey.
She said he had some family in the Island and had been offered work as a painter and decorator by his cousin as well as an offer of accommodation with his aunt and uncle.
Advocate Grace said that the couple had been in a relationship for five years. ‘His partner is seven to eight months into her pregnancy and there is a risk she may not be able to leave before the baby is born. She has no relatives in Jersey,’ she said.
Advocate Grace added that Freitas had intended to move to Jersey to detox and that he was now clean and was keen to work and look after his girlfriend and their child.
In sentencing Freitas, a warning was issued by Assistant Magistrate Peter Harris that people will be sent to jail if they bring Class A drugs to the Island, no matter how small the amount. He said: ‘The principle is that importation of a Class A drug has to be met with a custodial sentence. The message must get out that if you bring illegal drugs to Jersey, you will go to prison.’
In recommending that Freitas be deported when released from custody, Mr Harris said: ‘He does not speak English and they have no money. It seems quite clear to me that he still takes Class A drugs and I cannot see that his presence will be anything other than a drain on the Island’s resources.’
