Jail time sought for man who smuggled marijuana onto Kadena Air Base
By Chiyomi Sumida, Okinawa
bureau
NAHA — A Japanese prosecutor on Friday asked for a
three-and-a-half-year sentence for an Air Force dependent who smuggled marijuana into
Japan.
Prosecutor Hitoshi Okubo also asked the three-judge panel in Naha
District Court to fine Marcus D. Martinez $4,200 for smuggling 380 grams (12.2 ounces) of
marijuana through the U.S. military postal system last March.
Martinez, 30, is the husband of an active-duty servicemember. He
pleaded guilty at an earlier hearing to scheming with his wife’s brother in
California to mail the marijuana to his Kadena Air Base post office box.
Martinez allegedly paid $600 for the marijuana and had lined up an
American buyer on Okinawa to pay him $5,000. He said the marijuana was targeted for teens
on U.S. military bases.
The package arrived at the Kadena Air Base terminal on March 28,
where customs officers discovered it wrapped in scented paper and packed in a peanut
butter jar. Martinez was arrested when he came to pick up the package.
Military police also found four marijuana cigarettes on him and
during a search of his home on base, Okubo said.
He said Martinez confessed and stated he had made previous marijuana
mail drops nine times between July 2000 and February, earning about $8,000.
Martinez told the court he was sorry and was “very afraid of the
consequences.”
Okubo asked for a harsh sentence, accusing Martinez of
“scattering evil” to society.
Martinez will be sentenced July 13.
Back to June stories
Page Two news roundup
Stories from May, 2001
Stories from April, 2001
Stories from March, 2001
Stories from February,2001
Stories from January, 2001
Stories from December, 2000
Stories from November, 2000
Stories from October, 2000
Stories from August and September, 2000
Stories from June and July, 2000
Home |
