Container bound for Guyana diverted by Suriname customs officers – report

(de Ware Tijd) NIEUW NICKERIE/PARAMARIBO – Eight prison guards and two Customs officers have caused embarrassment to their organizations recently. The prison guards have been suspended for aiding and abeting the escape of three convicts in Nickerie, while the Customs officers have been arrested for their complicity in tax evasion.

A civilian has also been arrested by the police in this case. Justice Minister Edward Belfort says every effort is being made to solve the escape. During his working visit to the penitentiary at Hazard this past weekend, the Minister was shown items that were found in cells during routine visitations. Three of the suspended prison guards are from Nickerie and five from Paramaribo. Last week Monday, Furgel Grant, Lionel Cairo and Colombian John Freddy Monto Alegre were put to work near the ‘Bikini’ club to clear a plot of land. An eye witness claims that four prisoners took advantage of heavy rain to find their way to a taxi that was waiting for them. “Three got into the car, and the fourth was pushed out, after which the car drove off,” the witness says. De Ware Tijd has also learned that a ‘fast’ boat was ready somewhere on the Corantijn River to transport Alegre in particular. The three escaped convicts have allegedly fled abroad. Grant was convicted of theft and Cairo for violent theft, while Alegre had violated the Narcotics Law.

In the other case, the Customs officers and the civilian allegedly tried to keep a container full of goods intended for transit to Guyana in the country without having to pay import levies. The container was transported to Nickerie, but instead of being exported to Guyana, it was taken back to Paramaribo, perhaps with the intention to trade the goods there. It is suspected that this scheme was hatched to avoid having to pay import levies, as these are not charged for transit transports to Guyana. The three are suspected of violating the Law on Economic Crimes and forgery. This case was uncovered by the Customs Investigation Department, which later contacted the police to continue the investigation. The container has been seized pending the investigation.