Following the massive drug bust at Matthews Ridge in Region One (Barima/Waini), authorities believe that the operation was being conducted here by foreigners and that the enormous quantity of the drugs signals that it was awaiting further transshipment and was not meant to be distributed locally.
Four hand dug pits, about five to six feet deep, neatly camouflaged with wood, tarpaulin and bush, were found by the Special Forces (Guyana Defense Force Special Operations Section) containing cocaine weighing four and a half tonnes, estimated to worth US$160 million.
The find, after days of intense searching by the officers, was made at an abandoned airstrip in the Region One location. So far, one person is being held for questioning.
The United States Drug Enforcement Agency assisted local authorities with information, intelligence, and generally was on the scene to offer back up.
The bust by the Customs Anti-Narcotics Unit (CANU) followed months of high-level surveillance and intelligence gathering. It is reportedly the largest seizure of cocaine on land in Guyana.
Home Affairs Minister Robeson Benn has said that should more forest people and others cooperate with drug fighting authorities, crime fighting could be enhanced. “The people who live in the forest can join up in this fight, because this is a fight for everyone,” he told reporters on the scene.
This is one of the many operations that was conducted over the past five months identifying illegal airstrips within the country and monitoring them. In this case, CANU believes it was lucky to strike at the right time; to seize the drugs before they were moved to another location.
Further, the team believes it was not just successful in seizing the drugs, but in detecting a new concealment method and gives an idea as to how big the network is.
The airstrip in question is illegal and said to be built to accommodate small aircrafts bringing several kilos of cocaine from outside of Guyana.
After samples are taken, the cocaine will be burnt.
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