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Churchill's great-grandson heads to prison
SYDNEY, Australia - The great-grandson of late British Prime Minister Winston Churchill was sentenced Thursday to three years in prison for his part in a multimillion-dollar Ecstasy racket. Nicholas Jake Barton was arrested at his Sydney home in June last year during a series of raids in which officers seized about 250,000 Ecstasy tablets worth about $13 million. The 34-year-old Briton, son of Sir Winston's granddaughter Arabella Spencer Churchill and James Barton, pleaded guilty in Sydney's District Court last month to knowingly taking part in supplying a commercial quantity of a prohibited drug. The charge is punishable by up to 20 years imprisonment.Judge Colin Charteris sentenced Barton to three years. He can be considered for parole in 20 months. Charteris found Barton had a "belated and limited role in the supply of the drugs seized by police." "In determining the appropriateness of the sentence, the fact the defendant is descended from a hero of the 20th century does not affect the sentence I must impose," the judge said. Posted by: Seafarious 2007-12-24 |
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