Pepper sauce, furniture probes intensifying
Most of the cocaine being exported from Guyana is likely coming from Venezuela via the Pomeroon, the Customs Anti-Narcotics Unit (CANU) says and the nexus between that trade and gun-running is increasingly clear, sources say.
Inderpaul Doodnauth
In the wake of three large busts in Canada, the US and the US Virgin Islands of cocaine-filled shipments which originated from Guyana, questions have been raised about where the drugs are coming from and about the repackaging operations here.
CANU sources tell Stabroek News that around 60% of the cocaine that enters Guyana comes from Vene-zuela and transits through the Pomeroon. There is a lot of unmonitored boat traffic between Guyana and Venezuela which also accommodates gun-running. Drug trafficking, transport of guns and smuggling of fuel are intertwined in these areas and complement each other.
Orlando Watson
A portion of the drugs that enters the country from Venezuela goes farther east to Suriname by go-fast boats and there is an easy convertibility between the drug and gun-smuggling trades. For instance, in Suriname the going rate today for two Chinese-made AK-47s is a kilo of cocaine.
Questions linger over how and where the exporters in Guyana are packaging their drugs in these big shipments.
On December 8, officers found 276 kilos of high-quality cocaine at the Port of Saint John, New Brunswick, aboard a ship, Tropic Canada.
Reginald Rodrigues
The Toronto Star reported investigators as saying that the vessel in New Brunswick was confirmed to have been carrying 77-79 per cent pure cocaine, which was found inside the cardboard dividers of boxes of hot sauce. They removed all but two kilos of the cocaine and performed a controlled delivery of the container to its original destination in Etobicoke, Ontario. It was received by the owner of the company, Mahendrapaul Doodnauth, who unloaded the boxes at a rented storage facility on Rexdale Boulevard in Toronto. As a result, Doodnauth, of Toronto, was charged with importing cocaine, conspiracy to import cocaine and possession of cocaine for the purpose of trafficking.
A second major drug shipment was traced back to Guyana after US federal agents on December 24 seized 100 kilos of cocaine found inside pepper sauce cartons aboard a ship in St. Croix, U.S. Virgin Islands. The US agents had been tipped off by Canada.
Nymrod Singh
Then on the heels of two major pepper sauce busts, customs authorities at the Port of Miami, on December 29 acting on a tip off unearthed 373 pounds of cocaine hidden in furniture aboard a vessel, whose last stop was in Georgetown.
CANU sources yesterday said that both investigations are making headway. In relation to the pepper sauce shipments, a significant amount of information has been exchanged with Canada’s Royal Canadian Mounted Police and CANU is preparing to reel in more suspects. One of the suspects that CANU issued a bulletin for, Indarpaul Doodnauth, made himself available to the agency for questioning. Doodnauth, an East Coast-based businessman is the brother of Mahendrapaul Doodnauth, the man held by Canadian authorities in connection with both shipments of the pepper sauce cocaine. Canada is proceeding with its investigation and staying in touch with local law enforcement agencies.
Another man sought by CANU, Reginald Rodrigues, who was thought to be the shipper of the pepper consignment seized in Canada went underground after the bust became public and was able to evade an attempt to arrest him here. It is believed he has since fled to Suriname via the backtrack.
Another man wanted for questioning in relation to the pepper sauce, Orlando Watson has been in touch with the authorities here but is yet to turn himself in. He is thought to be connected to the second shipment. CANU sources say they are actively seeking two other businessmen who participated in the pepper sauce cocaine shipment and based on information from their lawyer they may turn themselves in for questioning. The two are associated with a business in Georgetown.
CANU sources say that the pepper sauce shipments were financed by a coterie of shady characters and persons with criminal antecedents who were looking to make a whopping profit from their Christmas operation. With the crushing of the operation some of the suspects are not only being sought by CANU but also by their financiers.
A suspect in the shipment of the cocaine furniture to Miami, Nymrod Singh, was nabbed in Bartica on Saturday after his photograph appeared in the newspapers. He spent his second day in custody yesterday and sources say he is saying that an acquaintance asked him to ship the furniture to Miami.
The furniture was allegedly picked up by Singh on November 1 and next appeared containerized on November 25 at a city wharf for loading onto the MV Rio Para.
This bust involved 194 packages valued at US$5.5M which was concealed in 72 pieces of furniture packed into the container.
According to NBC6.NET, the Customs and Border Protection (CBP) Officers inspecting the containers at the Miami seaport were alerted by a CBP K-9 to a specific container loaded with furniture.
The officers, attached to the Anti-Terrorism Contra-band Enforcement Team, proceeded to examine the furniture and discovered three packages concealed within one of the pieces of furniture. One of the packages was tested by the officers and the substance was positive for cocaine.
More packages of the drugs were discovered in 71 other pieces of furniture.
According to the Canadian press, the pepper sauce busts are part of a major anti-narcotics initiative dubbed “Project Falcon,” which sought to identify the sources of the criminal network that transported cocaine to street gang members and drug abusers in the Durham region.
The local investigations have also unearthed weaknesses in customs operations which enable the illicit shipments.
In one of the pepper shipments a fake Taxpayer Identification Number was used and the name of a non-existent company provided. Documents for the second pepper shipment appeared to be a copy of that provided for the first.
In relation to the furniture shipment, it was discovered that containers are being packed and sealed at locations where there isn’t adequate inspection. These containers are then taken to the wharves and shipped without any further checks of their cargo.
Here are my thoughts on this issue:
1. The border issue is a moot point. We simply do not have the resources to seal our borders plus the govt is hellbent on opening the borders with our neighbours.
2. Because of the inability to patrol and seal our borders, we need to take a people rather than a land oriented approach to the problem. As one poster suggested, we need better laws and enforcement of drug trafficking. Like the IRS, the GRA has to finally show that it is all that is is claiming to be and investigate persons of dubious wealth.
3. Strengthen and enforce the money laundering laws
4. Tighten the noose around all aspects of the money angle of the trade
5. Reduce amounts of cash allowedto be taken out of and into the country and require mandatory declaration of any amount above say $500
6. The govt should pass legislation to ensure that remittances are tracked in Guyana and that individuals should pay taxes on amounts received
7. Charge a drug investigation and analysis export tax on all exporters where these exporters must pay for their product to be investigated and assessed prior to export
8. Allow the DEA and other foreign policing and counter-drug agencies to operate in Guyana
9. Chavez has no qualms with allowing drugs to freely enter Guyana because of the potential for political disaster. Ideally, if he has aspirations on Guyana’s territory, he would simply wait for drug barons to achieve critical mass and power like they do in Colombia to fund and establish paramilitary groups which would then create havoc. He may also be waiting for the issue to become a major sore point before making incursions into Guyana’s territory on the basis of hunting drug traffickers. With enough incursions he will be tempted to use the northwest as a flyover zone and attempt to exercise de facto control over the region. In fact, Venezuela’s military already moved in and destroyed a few dredges in 2008.
Mr.Max i agree with most of what you say, but i won’t want my relatives to pay any tax on money i send them, when i already have to pay to send it for them that is double jeopardy, and by the way if i’m coming to the u.s.a how much you think 500 guyana dollars is worth in the u.s.a or in any other country.
WAH DEA HELL!! you are talking about controling money that is taken out of the country and paying tax on received money. you cerainly does not have any body abroad sending you a SMALL-PIECE we have to pay for sending money home and there are lots of questions asked by the money transfer offices and the the poor family also have to give away part of what they receive Are you from the Inland Revenue or one of these TAX -COLLECTION instutions or something. YUST GET REAL the VAT is more that enough for GUYANESE to pay and talking about taking money into the country guyana should be glad to have a few foreign guyanese who STILL go home to visit relatives and spent
as for taking money out. What is there to take out.when the Guyana dollar does not value as much as 10 Euro cent and further more when ever I go home I WANT TO SPEND NOT ONLY FREELY BUT WILDLY AND BE FREE TO RETURN WITH WHAT IS LEFT OVER without any questions being asked
Too much filth and corruption, for such a small country. As Guyanese we can do,much better than that. And one day,Guyanese from all walks of life,will make the government do their job. Some of you will disagree, with me. But I am just FED UP.
I for one agree with you.
let the drugs flow why is it that you people think that if drugs is wiped out of guyana it’s going to magically stop entering the u.s and ca. it’s just going to come from some other place just as fast. you people just love to talk a load of bull, here a secret non of you matter, nothing you say matters just live our little lives. let the people do what they have to do if they what to get rich quick what’s so wrong with that, im sure that all of you would love to get the big house’s and nice cars non of you can say that you wouldn’t want that. now all of you may say that you’ll love that but you rather work hard for it. well drug dealing is a very hard job it just that non of you have the gouts to do it. SO AS I ALWAYS SAY STOP THE BACK BITTING
they are deeply hurt that one sector of the population is getting real rich, with all the luxury in life. while they run away and are struggling in the cold to survive.
the saying is “HIGH RISK IS HIGH RETURNS”
i will agree with you if not guyana then some where else or some other means for the trade to continue, it’s very lucrative and there is a vast demand for it.
GOOD LUCK TO THOSE WHO ARE WILLING TO TAKE THE RISK, and you guys can ask the british how profitable it was for them.
Yes, the drugs should flow into the hands of your teenage kids or to your family members especially those younger ones, right? I must agree with you that they should all be addicts crawling on the streets and selling their bodies for their next fix.
The problem with people getting rich on drugs is that they want to get their way with everyone in their path and they will kill and maim in order to achieve it. You get kingpin armies killing people who criticize them or look at them the wrong way or refuse to cooperate with them. The other problem with the get rich mentality is that others want to get rich and decide to kill others to get it because they see the drug barons doing it.
Those get rich bastards then use innocent civilians as shields when they are fighting and civilians are killed as collateral damage in their wars. They also launder money very well, destroying local businesses and forcing people to leave their homelands. They also take whatever they want by force so if they like your land, they will take it from you. You cannot condemn them because they will eliminate you.
Sometimes I wonder why some of allyuh really leave Guyana!!
scarlam when someone you love, die of a drug overdose,or drug related violence. Write this same blog again. In the mean time,enjoy your big house and nice cars.
… ah guess us fighting to give our country the proud name it deserves is interfering with ur “biz”….
moderator plz verify his credentials and keep a tab on this one an de aders !….
If you are really serious (and I don’t believe that you are playing thed devil’s advocate here), I hope that the SN moderator and others who are monitoring this site, hunt you down and give you a little “roughing-up” And don’t tell me bull crap about Freedom of Speech. With that freedom comes RESPONSIBILITY, pardner.
I wish you had seen the pixs of that father who was decapitated by his son, because the son wanted money to get a “fix” from those same get-rich-quick-money-grubbing-leaches that you seem to love and admire!!!!
Cocaine destroys the lives of its users.
IT IS COMING IN TONS FROM OTHER PLACE BUT THE APETITE IS SO LARGE IT NEEDS MORE FROM ANY WHERE THEY CAN GET IT…..
scarlam boy you gon mek people cuss you out for wat yuh seying, although what you are sayin is true, drugs will never stop entering the u.s or canada, if it stop from guyana, it will pop up from another country.
i underswtand you they mess up your christmas lol
This is the kind of thinking in GT which lead to the continuation of the drug trade. I was more specific in a comment and SN pulled it. If one cannot say exactly what is happening how can we expect change. It takes guts to deal with many of the problems in Guyana and SN has shown time and time again it has no belly to call a spade a spade.
This has to be one of the dumbest comments I have heard in a very long time. Lets not forget that while the short term gains from the drug activities may be immensely attractive and lucrative. It nevertheless, destroys individuals, families, communities.
In the long run, it takes a lot more resources to repair all the damage caused by drug use and the activities associated with it. The loss of both human and economic capital. the social decadence.
Since the head of CANU has identified the likely entry source of the drugs coming into GY…now would be a good time to get with Commodore Best and other stakeholders to come up with a comprehensive strategy on how to stop the hemorrhaging at the borders. It should be dubbed “Project Iron Fist.”
The GUNS coming from Venezuela too. Not surprising if these traffickers know something about that.
JangO
WHERE THERE IS DRUGS THERE ARE GUNS…..
YOU SHOULD KNOW A THING OR TWO ABOUT GUNS WITH THE NAME-JANGO..
SOON WE WILL HEAR FROM SANCHES EHEHEHEHEHEHEHE
KEEP BLOGGING…NICE TO HEAR FROM YA
I am sure that the authorities are thinking about solutions to the drug problems as it not at all a hopeless situation. Border security, down to earth and forthright policing, bribery and corruption are some of the very urgent matters need to be looked into immeditely.
Mr. Chavez’s regime in Venezeula and the Bharrat Jagdeo’s political administration, are really not security friendly or have a demonstrated history of support for the US efforts, to curb the flow of illegal drugs into the USA and other parts of the world.
This lucrative and easy flow of illegal drugs into Guyana as a transhipment point, had been the backbone of Mr. Roger Khan’s illegal activities – interference and manipulation of the Guyana Police Force and for much of the bloody violence, violations of the rule of law, kidnappings, mass killings, mayhem, fear and insecurity etc., which afflicts the society.
Guyana’s corruption and porous borders, provides fertile conditions for the above unlawful activities.
The drug trafficking trade has been going on for some time now. Many in authority put a build eye on this issue. Since Roger Khan was held by the US authorities much more investigation should have carry out by the Guyana Government and the Police Force.
Thank mercy for the Canadian OPP to discovered the drugs among the pepper sauce, similar situation discovered in the Island and in the Furniture at Miami. The question is how many more times this shipment was done and not been caught. What steps has been taken in the years to stop and enforce the money laundering laws? Did the Tax enforcement Law did an investigation on their bank account? Have those people file their tax report? Then if so many of those culprit would have been caught.
The corruptions is endless and the poor are the victim. Sooner rather than later mouth will open and story will jump out.
the pomeroon is a lifeline to guyana. i remember in the days of the kabaka when most foodstuff were banned life-saving supplies of food, fuel, medicines, fertilizers, agro-chemicals, building supplies, etc were smulleged via the pomeroon. talk about corruption then! when these smugglers were caught they had to pay up big time. yet none of this ever made it in the newspapers.
Yeah, when they were caught… At least it was the essentials then. What is it now??? How many are ‘caught’? Talk about corruption now!
quibian
they wont tell anyone dat de big Kabaka wont stand this in any news media…tha big Kabaka ays do as i say but dont do as i do…..you think sn could have run so much story about floods on a daily basis?? the big Kabaka wont tolerate it and would shut it up or shut it down..going to scholl in the 60s70s we needed boats to make it to classes but dem blog heads here wont tell you they too were flodded out at that time..simply the big Kabaka wont tolerate any news media harping on floods or killings or drugs during that time…
It is so good of CANU to acknowledge that the cocaine coming through pomeroon for vevezuela.CAN U IMAGINE THAT THESE PEOPLE ARE SO DISRESPECTFUL TO GUYANESE ,TO TELL THEM THAT COCAINE COMING THROUGH POMEROON AND IN CANU’S HISTORY THEY NEVER MADE A BUST ON THE ENTIRE ESSEQUIBO COAST OR IS IT THE ADVANCE WARNING SYSTEM THAT THEY HAVE TO TELL THE DRUGS PUSHERS THAT ESSEQUIBO WILL BE HOT BE AWARE.