Opinion
April 18, 1994
Appeal from the Supreme Court, Queens County (Rotker, J.).
Ordered that the judgment is affirmed.
The defendant contends that the evidence against him was legally insufficient to prove that he knowingly attempted to possess the marihuana at issue. We disagree. The defendant was arrested at JFK Airport while helping load a shipment of what was purported to be fish, but contained 243 pounds of marihuana. The defendant admitted that he was the president of the company listed as the shipper from Jamaica, and he carried a card which indicated that the company listed as the receiver was a division of his Jamaican company. Thus, in addition to being in possession of the shipment, the defendant was associated with both the shipper and receiver of the shipment. Under these circumstances, we find that viewing the evidence adduced at trial in the light most favorable to the People (see, People v Contes, 60 N.Y.2d 620), it was legally sufficient to establish the defendant's guilt beyond a reasonable doubt (see, People v Reisman, 29 N.Y.2d 278, cert denied 405 U.S. 1041; compare, People v Acosta, 174 A.D.2d 181; People v Patello, 41 A.D.2d 954). Moreover, upon the exercise of our factual review power, we find that the verdict of guilt was not against the weight of the evidence (see, CPL 470.15). Balletta, J.P., Rosenblatt, Ritter and Friedmann, JJ., concur.