Six runway lights at the Cheddi Jagan International Airport (CJIA) were discovered missing on Thursday night and even though the Timehri police conducted searches at several homes in the nearby squatting area, up to late last night the lights had still not been found.
The lights are said to be worth some US$1,000 each.
However, the searches uncovered other items, which were stolen from the airport some time ago, including several feet of runway cable and fuel and up to last night several persons were in police custody assisting with investigations.
Speaking with this newspaper yesterday, CJIA Chief Executive Officer, Ramesh Ghir, said that over the last few months the airport has been a target for thieves. He said there had been several break-ins, people have sabotaged equipment, stolen fuel and broken into the airport’s main storage area and stolen a number of specialized cables.
He said the total loss to the airport as well as many of the ground-handling operators was in excess of $8 million over the last four months. On the issue of the stolen lights, Ghir confirmed that the six portable lamps were discovered missing some time around 9:30 on Thursday night. According to him, the last check was conducted about an hour before the lights were discovered missing. However, he said the lamps were replaced with some in stock and so no flights were affected. He said the joint services were alerted and several searches were conducted, but did not yield much. The lawmen continued their search and yesterday morning got word that there was a particular individual in the neighbourhood who was known for purchasing stolen items.
Stabroek News was told that the police went to the man’s house and during a search recovered several feet of 5,000 volts runway cable and another set of cables, which was the property of Guyana Power and Light Inc. Chainsaws and other equipment were also picked up by the police and are being held at the Timehri station since they too are suspected to have been stolen.
Several five-gallon containers of fuel were also seized, since fuel was stolen from the airport in large quantities.
The owner of the house where the items were recovered was not arrested yesterday but his family members were assisting police with investigations.
Subsequent to the discoveries yesterday, this newspaper was reliably informed that the drive to remove the squatters may be intensified.
Transport Minister Robeson Benn had last year met some of the squatters and explained that further development of the airport would mean extended runways, and more spacious airport facilities.
He told this newspaper last evening that to allow for this growth the squatters would have to move since squatting also posed safety and administrative risks.
A source at the airport also told this newspaper that many of the small shops in proximity to the airport have over time become permanent homes for some persons.
