Lorzeno Liburd Sentenced to Six Years for Cocaine Smuggling

Lorenzo Liburd of St. John was sentenced last week to six years and 10 months in prison for trying to smuggle two kilograms of cocaine in his carry-on luggage at Cyril E. King airport on St. Thomas, according to a published report.

Liburd, 36, was convicted in January of two counts of drug possession for attempting to transport two kilos of cocaine on a Delta Airlines flight bound for Atlanta, Georgia.

The almost seven year sentence — just more than half of the 12 years and four months requested by prosecutors — was intended as a deterrent, explained V.I. District Court Judge Curtis Gomez in a V.I. Daily News article.

“The court has considered the nature and characteristics of the defendant and the seriousness of the crime,” Gomez was quoted in the Daily News. “He’s had touches with the law. The offense is a serious violation — trying to move two kilograms of cocaine through the airport.”

Liburd will serve five years on probation after his release from a prison in the Orlando, Florida, area, according to the report.