Woman accused of smuggling heroin testifies in own defence
A woman who was arrested at Pierre Elliott Trudeau International Airport after seven kilograms of heroin were discovered in her suitcases testified in her own defence at the Montreal courthouse on Wednesday.
“I have so many things to tell you guys today,” Serena Narinesingh told the 12-person jury that will ultimately decide whether she is guilty of smuggling 7.7 kilograms of heroin into Canada.
“It’s been two years since I’ve been (detained) in jail,” said Narinesingh, who is also charged with possession of heroin with intent to traffic. “Welcome to the nightmare of my life,” she said, not quite one minute into her testimony.
At that point Superior Court Justice Daniel Payette excused the jury from the courtroom to address Narinesingh’s lawyer Steve Hanafi. Payette’s reason for excusing the jury at that point cannot be reported.
When she was sworn in before testifying Narinesingh, a resident of Vancouver, listed her occupation as “chef.” The jury has heard evidence that she described herself as “a nanny from B.C.” when a Canada Border Services Agency officer asked her what she did for a living in July 2015, just before her two suitcases were searched.
But during her testimony on Wednesday, she said she worked as a caterer who specializes in Caribbean food and an escort “for companionship and not sex.” She said she also worked at spas offering sensual massages that involved “body sliding.”
The 28-year-old woman told the jury that she suffered a miscarriage while detained at the Tanguay Detention Centre shortly after her arrest in 2015. Narinesingh said she is diabetic. Narinesingh rambled at times during her testimony but when Hanafi asked her about a boyfriend in Kigali, a man named Abdullah, she provided testimony that seemed to apply to her case.
“I know that I’m in this situation because of (Abdullah and a relative of his),” she said. “I’ve been in jail for two years, suffering because of what they did to me.”
The court was adjourned for the day before Narinesingh could testify about the final day of her visit to Kigali. But when she was questioned about it by RCMP Corp. Kyle Mink on July 18, 2015, she said that her boyfriend placed locks on her two suitcases, and handed her the keys to them, just before she was about to board an airplane back to Canada.
Mink testified earlier in the day on Wednesday while being crossexamined by Hanafi that he spoke to Narinesingh again in December 2015. He said she expressed concerns for her safety while they were on the way to a location where she would give another statement to police.
Narinesingh is expected to resume her testimony on Thursday.