Two Royal Bahamas Defence Force (RBDF) officers were freed following their arraignment in separate matters on drug possession charges in the Magistrate’s Court yesterday.

Marine Frederick Clarke, 25, appeared in court before Magistrate Andrew Forbes along with 27-year-old Leslie Minns, of Johnson Road, for one count of possession of dangerous drugs, Indian hemp.

According to court dockets, police on foot patrol spotted the pair driving recklessly in the area of Dunkin Donuts on Marlborough Street last Thursday.

Upon stopping the vehicle, police were prompted to search the vehicle, where they found one gram of marijuana in the car’s cup holder between the driver and passenger seats.

Clarke pleaded not guilty and was acquitted of all charge and discharged, but the same could not be said for Minns.

Minns, who took responsibility for his actions, pleaded guilty and was subsequently given one year’s probation with mandatory drug counseling and random drug tests.

Magistrate Forbes further warned Minns that should he violate any of these terms, he would be jailed for a period not exceeding three months.

He is expected to return to court on June 19, 2018.

At this time, should he have carried out the terms of his probation, all charges will be dropped and the incident will not be placed on his record.

A similar arraignment took place shortly after for fellow RBDF officer Leonard Thompson.

Thompson, alongside his co accused Kendal Simmons, of Highbury Estates, were also charged with one count of possession of dangerous drugs namely Indian hemp.

In this case, 10 grams of marijuana were found in Simmon’s shirt pocket, under the passenger seat of a car and the pocket of the door panel.

Thompson pleaded guilty to the charge and was also acquitted of all charges and discharged.

Meantime, Simmons was given a year’s probation to undergo drug treatment as well as random drug tests.

Magistrate Forbes reminded Simmons, who admitted he’d been smoking since the age of 13, that many people do not fully understand the severity of their decisions.

He also told Simmons that if he violates the terms of his probation, he would be incarcerated for a period not longer than three months.

He will return to court on June 19, 2018.