Lewis was arrested following a raid on her home on August 25, 2016.
During the raid, marijuana was discovered in her adult son’s bedroom and in a back shed – the police also found that Antonio Bullard, a Bahamian national who was in the country illegally, lived on the premises.
Following her arrest, Lewis was suspended on full pay from her post at immigration, where she served for 30 years.
On Friday, Magistrate Kirsty-Ann Gunn acquitted Lewis after the crown failed to convince her that Lewis knew that her son was dealing drugs from her home and that Bullard, had been staying there with her knowledge and implicit permission.
According to the Magistrate, she found Lewis’ account that she was not aware her sons were dealing drugs plausible, and while CCTV footage from the home showed transactions taking place, the crown was unable to demonstrate that Lewis was present when this was happening or could have been aware that it was taking place.
Concerning the status of Bullard, Gunn said she believed that Lewis had no reason to question the status of what she believed was a friend of her adult son. She said she could not believe that Lewis would have had reason to suspect that Bullard had landed illegally, given her own experiences of illegal immigrants, or imagine her own son would take such a step, given her job.
With Lewis now being cleared, it’s reported that she should now be entitled to return to her post, but since her suspension, the immigration department has been abolished, with the enforcement arm moved to the new Customs and Border Control unit and the issues of work permits and legal immigration shifted to the new WORC Agency.
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