Northern Division Police seized 15 kilogrammes of pure cocaine in Arima early yesterday after getting an anonymous tip from an informant. The illegal drugs were seized one day after police in the Central Division recovered approximately $6 million in cocaine and arrested two drug traffickers during a separate exercise in Freeport. Although the drugs seized in both raids carried similar weight, packaging and purity, police estimated yesterday’s seizure to be $3 million.
According to reports, shortly after midnight, an informant contacted detectives of the Arima CID to report suspicious activity at a house at Cleaver Road, D’Abadie, Arima. In response, police obtained a search warrant and raided the house hours later. Officers, led by Senior Supt David Abraham discovered the drugs which were divided into several rectangular packages. They also seized a loaded .38 revolver.
One man was arrested and was being interrogated up to late yesterday. He is expected to be charged with drug trafficking and firearm possession this weekend, and will appear in court next week. Investigators believe that the drugs were destined to be transhipped to Europe and North America at the Piarco International Airport.
The same group of police officers also raided a house in Malabar, Arima, where they seized a revolver and six rounds of ammunition. The owner of the house and his five female relatives were arrested. The two illegal firearms brings the total seized by that division for the year to four. Last year the division seized 144 illegal guns—the highest figure in all nine policing divisions.
Getting the illegal guns
Speaking at the Arima Police Station yesterday, ASP Hendron Moses said recent exercises in the division were conducted in a bid to curtail a recent spike in murders. “These weapons are especially dangerous in the hands of criminals. We are working tirelessly, day and night, to bring a noticeable decrease in crime and to make the division a safer place,” Moses said.
Moses also appealed to members of the public to continue to provide information to police. Supt Neville Sankar, Insp Mark Maharaj and Sgt Rene Katwaroo and officers of the Northern Division Task Force (NDTF) were also involved in the exercise.