The Shakedown - Bennett Drops a Brick

After a brief morning dip in the Arabian Sea, I decided to find an internet café so that I could update the blog and attempt to upload some photos. Bennett was still passed out from the previous evening and he was not moving much when I left the room.

After inquiring in several places, I found one that allowed me to upload photos. However, the connection was slow and the rented computer was worthless for image processing. During this time, Bennett awoke and went for a walk on a hill overlooking the “Hilltop” rave which was still in full swing.

According to Bennett, he was on the hill taking pictures of the rave and hawks flying overhead when he was stopped by a police jeep. The policemen took him behind some brush off the main road and began pressing him for drugs. Having read earlier in the Lonely Planet guide that drug possession carries a minimum sentence of ten years and that the Goan police have been known to plant drugs on victims in order to extort an exorbitant amount of rupees, Bennett was understandably frightened. Apparently, the policemen operated under the assumption of Bennett’s guilt and it was Bennett's responsibility to prove his innocence. After endless attempts to entrap Bennett, the policemen relented, having found nothing illegal in his possession.

I returned to the room and found Bennett completely distraught and ready to leave Goa as soon as possible. We had an early dinner at a Chinese-Indian café, played a round of pool which I won, and turned in so that we could get an early start at dawn.

Posted at 02:00PM Jan 01, 2007 by D Bums Comments[0]