2 slapped with narco-trafficking charge after high-speed chase – 8.2kg cocaine bust

Two men accused of trafficking more than eight kilograms (kg) of cocaine were on Tuesday remanded to prison after appearing before acting Chief Magistrate Faith McGusty at the Georgetown Magistrates’ Courts, where conflicting accounts of their arrest were laid before the court.
Shaquille Gordon, 32, and 54-year-old Ravindranauth Persaud pleaded not guilty to a charge alleging that on Saturday last they had 8.226 kg of cocaine in their possession for the purpose of trafficking along the Rupert Craig Highway between Kitty and Sheriff Streets, Georgetown.
They were represented by attorneys Eden Corbin and Dexter Todd, while the prosecution objected to bail on behalf of the Customs Anti-Narcotics Unit (CANU).
Todd told the court that the matter was one of entrapment, insisting that the two men did not know each other and were wrongfully targeted by CANU officers.
Todd told the court that an unknown individual contacted Persaud to collect a package, but, being occupied, he instead dispatched a taxi driver, Gordon, to do so.

Todd said Gordon picked up a passenger who later turned out to be a CANU officer carrying the package and was instructed to drive slowly. He claimed that Gordon later noticed a vehicle following them and was told by the officer to stop. Upon stopping, the officer reportedly exited the car, at which point Gordon threw the package back at him.
The defence further alleged that Gordon was then pursued, causing him to panic and attempt to flee. Todd claimed that after Gordon eventually stopped, he was arrested.
However, the prosecutor told the court that CANU officers, acting on information received, were conducting an operation in Kitty and Sheriff Streets, Georgetown, when they observed Persaud handing a package to Gordon, who was driving alongside a bus. The package was placed into Gordon’s vehicle, after which CANU officers moved in.
According to the prosecution, Gordon immediately sped off, prompting a pursuit. During the chase, Gordon allegedly threw the package from the passenger-side window. Officers stopped to retrieve the package, which was later confirmed to contain suspected narcotics, while others continued the pursuit.
Gordon was eventually apprehended after crashing his vehicle and attempting to escape through a trench. Upon arrest, officers observed a gash on his forehead. The prosecutor said both men were arrested.
Objecting to bail, the prosecution argued that no special reasons existed to justify bail for either defendant and contended that Gordon posed a flight risk, noting his alleged attempt to flee from law enforcement.
Magistrate McGusty adjourned the matter to February 12, when the court is expected to examine video footage related to the incident. Based on the submissions thus far, bail was refused, and both men were remanded to custody.
In a separate press release, CANU reported that officers seized approximately 18.135 pounds (8.226 kg) of cocaine during the operation following a high-speed chase through Georgetown.
CANU stated that officers intercepted two vehicles during an operation near David Street, Kitty, but the driver of a white Volkswagen motorcar fled, leading to a pursuit that resulted in a collision involving several CANU vehicles.
During the chase along Sheriff Street, officers observed a brown cardboard box being thrown from the fleeing vehicle. The box was later recovered and found to contain seven brick-like parcels suspected to be cocaine.
Both Gordon, the driver of the Volkswagen, and Persaud, who was driving a white Pitbull minibus, were arrested and escorted to CANU Headquarters, where the substance tested positive for cocaine and weighed to be 8.226 kg.