By LAUREL V WILLIAMS Saturday, September 4 2010

AN attorney representing an elderly man who is charged with trafficking marijuana, pleaded yesterday with a San Fernando magistrate to have his bail conditions altered.

Attorney Rupert Frank made the application yesterday in San Fernando Second Magistrate’s Court on behalf of his client, Shane Patterson, 73.

Patterson, of Rankine Street, Mon Repos, is jointly charged with Malcolm Joseph, 59, of St Vincent Street, San Fernando, with possession of 18.75 kilogrammes of marijuana for the purpose of trafficking.

Joseph was also charged separately with possession of 16.5 kilogrammes of marijuana for the purpose of trafficking.

When the matter was first called last week before Magistrate Alexander Prince, he set bail in the sum of $3 million—$1 million for Patterson and $2 million for Joseph.

The magistrate also ordered that both Patterson and Joseph surrender their passports to the authorities.

Patterson and Joseph were further ordered to report to the Mon Repos Police Station and San Fernando Police Station respectively on Mondays and Fridays between 7 am and 7 pm.

Yesterday the accused men re-appeared before Prince on the charges. Attorney Frank, who represented the two accused, told the magistrate that Patterson has difficulty walking and has to hire transportation every time he goes to the police station.

Rather than altering the bail conditions Prince responded: “ Those are the conditions and I am not minded to amend orders so quickly. The original bail documents are not even before me at this time. I will consider this at the next hearing”

The accused men will return to court on October 19. PC David George of the Crime Suppression Unit (CSU) at the Marabella Police Station laid the charges.