“All’s well that ends well” – so says supermodel and social media influencer Gigi Hadid, days after being ordered to pay more than $2,000 in fines and legal costs for bringing ganja into Cayman.
Hadid, 28, whose first name is actually Jelena, was arrested on 10 July along with her friend Leah Nicole McCarthy, a Customs and Border Control statement Tuesday afternoon confirmed.
CBC said the women arrived on a private aircraft to the Cayman Islands from the United States and were arrested following a search of their luggage, where a “small amount” of marijuana was recovered.
CBC officers found 25.39 grams of ganja while inspecting their luggage at the private arrivals terminal at the Owen Roberts International Airport.
According to court records, Hadid was charged with one count of importation of a controlled drug (ganja) and another of importation of a drug utensil (a grinder).
CBC said McCarthy was also charged with the same offences.
The Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions confirmed that Hadid entered guilty pleas to both charges when she appeared before Chief Magistrate Valdis Foldats on 12 July and was fined $1,000, in addition to a costs order of $1,016.25.
McCarthy also pleaded guilty and was fined $1,000.
No conviction was recorded against the women.
The illegal possession and/or consumption of cannabis and/or cannabinoid products, upon conviction in Summary Court, carries a prison sentence of between nine and 12 months and/or a fine of $1,000 for up to 12 grams of ganja on a first offence.
A second or subsequent offence carries up to 18 months and a fine of up to $2,000.
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The social media celebrity and model, who has amassed 78.8 million followers on Instagram, received a ‘special result’ – that is, no conviction recorded – for her guilty pleas. Having paid her fine, she has been released to enjoy her visit to Cayman.
Taking to Instagram, on Tuesday, 18 July, Hadid posted a short video of herself and another woman lounging on Seven Mile Beach with the caption, “All’s well that ends well”, which has garnered mixed reactions.
A special result is a common practice adopted by Cayman’s courts when dealing with tourists who break the jurisdiction’s drug laws.
By not recording a conviction, tourists are free to return to Cayman, while the financial penalty is often used as a deterrent.
Cayman Compass has reached out to Hadid’s attorney for comment, but a response had not been received as of press time.
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Gee, I kind of doubt that this average Canadian who doesn’t have 16 Million Insta followers would get the same “fine, no charges” if I got busted bringing pot into the Country…..