Coca-Cola Heir Alki David Arrested, Cannabis Plants Found In Private Jet

UPDATE: 11:20 p.m. EDT - A representative for Alkiviades “Alki” David said in an emailed statement to International Business Times on Tuesday that the 50-year-old declared the cannabis plants, seeds and CBD products upon landing at the Robert L. Bradshaw International Airport. The Vancouver Sun had reported that David was arrested after the cannabis products were found on his private jet. However, his representative Owen Phillips said David was “briefly detained at the airport and then allowed to go, with all the hemp.”

Phillips also said former prime minister of Saint Kitts and Nevis, Denzil Douglas, worked with David and helped secure his release. But Prime Minister Timothy Harris ordered his arrest two days after his release. David is the heir to the Levantis Shipping fortune which made its money by owning the license to distribute Coca Cola in the Mediterranean. When he was detained, David claimed the plants were “pure hemp” and were to be used to make cannabidiol products. He declared all of the products as he was hoping to start a legal hemp business.

Meanwhile, Phillips also confirmed that David’s partner Chase Ergen, who is the son of Dish Network billionaire Charlie Ergen, was arrested separately and was being held without charges as of Tuesday.

Original story:

Alkiviades “Alki” David, Greek billionaire and heir to the Coca-Cola fortune, was arrested on the Caribbean Island of St. Kitts after more than $1.3 million worth of cannabis was found on board his private jet, media reports said late Monday.

The 50-year-old was taken into custody by the anti-narcotics unit at the Robert L. Bradshaw International Airport. Customs officials found approximately 5,000 cannabis plants in addition to seeds and a variety of other cannabis products on the jet, according to the Vancouver Sun.

Authorities charged him with intent to supply, possession of controlled drugs and importation of a controlled drug into the federation, officials from the St. Christopher and Nevis Police Force confirmed. Following the arrest, David claimed the plants were “pure hemp” and were to be used to make cannabidiol products — a non-intoxicating compound found in cannabis and hemp — for his medical cannabis company, SwissX.

In April, David and Chase Ergen, the chairman of Dish Network and EchoStar, announced they formed a consortium aimed at developing the cannabis business in Eastern Caribbean nations such as St. Kitts-Nevis, Dominica and Antigua.

Local media reports said David was released on a $30,000 bail, under the provision he surrenders all travel documents and reports daily to the Frigate Bay Police Station. David is believed to be worth an estimated $3.3 billion. David was scheduled to appear at Basseterre Magistrate Court on May 14.

In April, he appeared before a court for an unrelated matter which saw him ordered to pay $11 million for allegedly stroking a female employee’s legs while comforting her after her mother's death. Chasity Jones, 42, sued David claiming she was fired for refusing to engage in sexual acts with him. Jones's attorney Lisa Bloom said during the court hearing that the victim will suffer from PTSD for life because of what she went through while working for David.

"This is a case about a sexual predator running loose in a company he controlled," Bloom said in court last month. "She was fired because she refused to have sex with him."

A spokesperson for David told People magazine in a statement: “Mr. David denies all of Ms. Jones’s allegations including her allegations of sexual harassment. Mr. David will be filing an appeal to reverse what he believes was an unfair and unjust judgment.”

David is also the founder of a company known for creating holograms of artists, including the late Tupac Shakur and Michael Jackson.