Lobo gets 16 years for drug smuggling
David Lobo
(CNS): Former customs officer David Karl Lobo (33) was handed a sixteen-year jail term on Friday by acting Grand Court judge, Dame Justice Dobbs, who described him as an intelligent man who played a leading role in the cocaine smuggling operation for which he was convicted earlier this year. Lobo was the only one of the gang of five convicted in the two kilo-bust who had denied the charges and went to trial. The judge said that while the ex-customs officer did not use his job to facilitate the crime, he still diminished the integrity the public has for such a position.
Justice Dobbs did not accept that Lobo was involved in a one-off stupid mistake but that he had been deliberately involved in the cocaine smuggling ring for financial gain. She said that even his claims at trial that he was smuggling artifacts and not cocaine demonstrated that he was looking for any business opportunity, legal or otherwise, to make money.
The judge gave “the middle men” in the smuggling operation considerable discounts on what would have been similar lengthy jail terms because of their guilty pleas and, more so, because of their cooperation with the authorities and the evidence they gave against Lobo. She gave Lesme Romualdo Perez five years to reflect his slightly greater role in the smuggling operation than Ruiz Alan Taylor Dominguez, whom she gave a prison term of four years.
The two mules, Jose Leonardo Parra-Ferrini and Yoandry Jose Morales Molina, who the judge said played a much less sophisticated role and were likely exploited over the tragic circumstances surrounding their family, were given six years each.
Justice Dobbs said she accepted that they had acted out of a desire to save the life of Molina’s baby, who was in need of medical treatment, as she offered her condolences over the death of the child since the men were arrested.
She said that the men were well aware of what they were smuggling, as they had swallowed the 60 condom wrapped pellets of drugs, but as well as being poor, the men were in a “desperate situation”. She gave them credit for their admissions and had also taken their circumstances into account.
All of the men will be given credit for the time they have already served in jail, which for Lobo is just a few months. However, the four South American men have been in prison since their arrest in June 2017.
Bad things happen to bad people!
Hardened criminals serving more than 5 years should be sent to a facility somewhere abroad that are equipped and trained to deal with that grade of criminal. We shouldn’t be housing them at Northward to train-up and network our petty criminals to the local instruments of international cartels. That’s not the kind of “trade school” we should be running.
Non-violent?!? He managed an operation that forced desperate mules to ingest deadly toxic liquid cocaine in dozens of flimsy knotted condoms to be expelled on arrival. Maybe watch Frank E Flower’s “Swallow”, or “Maria Full of Grace” to see how non-violent that whole enterprise is. Something to think about when you’re doing your next line.
And if that doesn’t put you off research how the shit is made. Truly awful stuff. I can’t believe there is actually demand for it!
I still eat hot dogs.
What a shame man, Lobo and I went to school together and he was always smart and just a normal easy going kid. He had a good job for years at Customs but I guess greediness got to him, life ruined now.
Wow, that is a heavy sentence for a non violent crime.
9.36am Do you know what his job was?.
Free Lobo Bobo !
Nah today Lobo!
Respectable sentence…anyone know what expats (R Schroder) get for cocaine possession???
I am not sure about the outcome of that case but I do recall it was a possession charge of a very small quantity.
So very different then this one.
Users are the victims of the dealers.
I see the difference and understand it was a small amount (he was at work so had possibly already had his frosted flakes) however was there even a relatively smaller sentence or are white collar expats treated differently? Oh and this guy was no victim…arrogant/entitled knob with victims (including a cab driver) sure.
He was dealing! Maybe he only got caught with possession.
Victim of dealers? Surely if alcoholics are not viewed as victims of the Government, who are at the top of the food chain, receiving feed for liquor licenses then the illegal drug users have them selves to blame.
Blaming the victims. That’s low.
Same as Caymanians.
Thirty would have been more fitting. Wasted opportunity to set an example.
Dear Auntie, if Lobo stood to gain $90k in his Columbia’s artifact smuggling operation, how much more has Dept of Immigration been paying him since his arrest in 2017, a second theft, while he shamelessly plead falsely? Is the Dept of Immigration obligated to sue him to claw back the public’s money?
Genie still on leave. Getting paid every month.
That’s an unfair statement. Jeannie is a victim of circumstances. As a long term high ranking officer, respected and well established, it would have been very stupid of her to knowingly be involved in any kind of illegal/criminal matters. Stupidity and greed is what caused Lobo to ruin his life. Only the haters would accuse Jeannie of being either or both.
haters? what does that mean?
6.07pm Different treatment for Caymanians?>
If he was convicted in January, why did Dept of Immigration pay full salary all the way up to sentencing on Friday? Public employees that are arrested for serious offenses, for which they plea innocent, ought to be allowed some amount of diminished pay while they await court, on the terms that if subsequently found to have been guilty (or the mastermind), should also be liable to forfeit that pay all the way back to the initial arrest date. Full pay and happy references from public entities shouldn’t be the norm, yet it seems they are. It wouldn’t be in the private sector.
As stated in the title of this piece, Lobo worked as a Customs Officer, (not that it matters Post Conviction with the merger) just figured I’d point out the obvious. Most importantly, could you imagine the liabilities government would incur if its employees that get arrested are acquitted? Civil Servants innocent and guilty alike who were accused in the past recieved no pay or part pay. Upon acquittal however, lawsuits ensued costing Government (us the people mind you) exorbitant amounts of money as many were successful. There is normally reason to the madness and just because it is misunderstood does not make it wrong.
Finally got him.
Even 36 years would have been better as he doesn’t care a lick about all the lives he would destroyed with that poison. When is the trail going to lead to the rich accountants and bankers using our country as a temporary working holiday and procuring this venomous poison for their useful pleasures.
11.54am I am confused, do you in fact care a lick about the “expatriates” using this poison, or would you prefer they destroy their lives so they can complete their temporary holiday. Presumably you are confident Caymanians don’t have this problem even if they do traffic the drug.
cess pita, what’s your month habit at?
What a stupid question. What are you smoking and more importantly where did you buy it .
This is as bad as it gets, a customs officer of all people, importing Class A drugs for sale in the Cayman Islands. He is surely not only full of greed and cares nothing for all the misery and blighted lives he would be responsible for, but he is also stupid to think he could plead not guilty and get away with it. Fortunately this plea did the public a favour as he would have got a one third reduction in his sentence otherwise.
church doors are open to all….including david lobo……
Like I said, a sham investigation.
3:32 am, like i said u should be locked up with him
Wow. 16 years! That’s a lot for sheer greed and stupidity. I thought he was guilty, but assumed he’d get a maximum of 5 or 6 years.
It’s a draconian sentence.
2:40 And it’ll almost certainly be reduced on appeal.
I am sure we will see him out in less than 2 years. Our judicial system is a joke
Justice served.
Should been 26 years he is a bad one
At least it is not the usual slap on the wrist.