A young corporal based on Okinawa, Japan, was sentenced to two years in a Japanese prison for attempting to smuggle cannabis products into the country.
Marine Cpl. Nicholas Garner was sentenced to two years in prison with hard labor and fined $4,344 after pleading guilty to two counts of violating Japan’s Cannabis Control and Customs laws, according to Stars and Stripes.
Authorities launched an investigation into Garner after a half gallon of cannabis liquid and nearly a quarter pound of cannabis flower arrive in the mail at Camp Foster, Okinawa, on June 7, 2021. When authorities arrested the Marine, he had a small amount of cannabis and liquid on him, according to Stars and Stripes.
In a separate case two Marines at Camp Kinser, Okinawa, pleaded guilty on Thursday to violating one count of the Japanese control act.
Marine Cpl. Deshane Fox and Lance Cpl. Alfred Johnson were charged on Nov. 9 after a package containing a quarter pound of marijuana and 4.5 grams of cannabis liquid were intercepted by the authorities, Stars and Stripes reported.
Fox told the court he contacted drug dealers in the U.S. and had them ship him the marijuana in order to sell it to other service members. Johnson said he pitched in on the deal and also was selling the drugs, according to Stars and Stripes.
Fox said he was driven to drug dealing after a divorce pushed him into financial issues, while Johnson said he turned to drug dealing to pay the bills for his mother in the U.S. who lost her job during the COVID-19 pandemic, Stars and Stripes reported.