The jury delivered the verdict today (Tuesday, 21st February, 2011) in the Sam M Gibbons building in Tampa which houses the United States Middle District Court, Florida Division.
The artiste was found guilty on conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute five kilograms or more of a mixture and substance containing a detectable amount of cocaine, attempting to possess five kilograms or more of cocaine and aiding and abetting others in using a communication facility in the commission of a felony.
He was, however, not convicted of the fourth charge which was: knowingly and intentionally possessing a firearm in furtherance of and during the course of a drug-trafficking crime.
Buju throughout the maintained he is innocence stressing that he played no part in any conspiracy to possess cocaine.
In denying the claims against him, Buju though his attorney David Oscar Markus, argued that he never became a willing participant of the cocaine conspiracy charged in the superseding indictment.
This trial, which began on February 14, was the second attempt of the US government to convict the Jamaican artiste as the first trial last year was declared a mistrial after jurors failed to arrive at a unanimous position.
Buju was arrested on December 10, 2009.
His long-time friend Ian Thomas and a James Mack were arrested the same day when they attempted to buy cocaine from undercover detectives in a Florida warehouse. Thomas and Mack pleaded guilty but Buju denied the charges. He said he decided to fight in federal court because he knows he is innocent.
This media house understands that Buju’s bail was revoked and he has been detained until sentencing.
(Content for this article was obtained from a Go-Jamaica report and a Caribbean360 report)