St. John;s Antigua- LIAT pilot Keith Richard Otway Allen was denied bail and is on remand at Barbados’ lone penal institution following his first court appearance on drug charges yesterday.
The 34 year-old first officer is accused of smuggling 65 pounds of cannabis, concealed in his luggage, into that country on Wednesday.
The St Vincent & the Grenadines national, in uniform but not on duty, had travelled from his homeland to Barbados on a LIAT flight.
He is scheduled to reappear in court next Friday to answer charges of illegal possession, trafficking, illegal possession with intent to supply and importation of cannabis.
Meanwhile, his employer LIAT said it intends to carry out its own investigation following the arrest of one of its pilots for alleged drug smuggling in Barbados.
The company did not detail exactly what it would be probing or when the investigation would begin.
However, Corporate Communications Manager Desmond Brown defended the integrity of the company’s staff saying, “Liat hopes the actions of one employee will not reflect negatively on the hundreds of other ethical staffers who work hard to serve the public.”
He also said in a press release that the airline’s management is confident that the overwhelming majority of employees continue to respect the laws of their country.
Browne reaffirmed the company’s full support for and cooperation with law enforcement authorities.
