$40B cocaine found at Matthew’s Ridge originated from Venezuela

– several foreigners arrested in SA country
– overseas team assisting with investigations

Weeks after the discovery of $40 billion worth of cocaine at Matthew’s Ridge, Region One (Barima-Waini), a source confirmed that the drugs originated from Venezuela.

The €176 million worth of cocaine was unearthed in several bunkers off an illegal airstrip near the Clandestine Airstrip on September 1.
The Customs Anti-Narcotics Unit (CANU) had reported that its officers, in collaboration with the Guyana Defence Force (GDF) Special Forces Unit with support from the United States (DEA) Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA), carried out an operation in Region One which led to the discovery of the illegal airstrip.
A subsequent search of the surrounding area resulted in the discovery of 4.4 tonnes of cocaine. Law enforcement officials believe that the drugs were brought to Guyana from neighbouring country/countries and were stored here until further transshipment to Europe.
On this note, the source told the Guyana Times that even though the drugs originated from Venezuela, several persons in another South American country were arrested in connection with the huge bust.
The source further stated that following the arrest of the individuals, a team from that country travelled to Guyana to assist with the local investigations. The source could not have divulged any further information but stated that investigations are continuing.
Following the discovery, the Director of CANU, James Singh had stated that the illegal airstrip was built with a plan to accommodate small aircrafts, bringing several kilos of cocaine from outside of Guyana.
According to him, the discovery was the second phase of an ongoing operation with the GDF to identify illegal airstrips across the country and monitor them. He revealed that a few days prior, Joint Services ranks found a quantity of fuel and with the assistance of persons in the area, further investigations led to the unearthing of the massive cocaine find.
The CANU Director related that based on information shared with the DEA, the ranks suspected that the narcotics were hidden underground. As a result of due diligence, the blocks of cocaine were discovered buried in bunkers/pits hand-dug about five to six feet deep and were covered with tarpaulin, wood and bushes.
“[The narcotics] were found in four pits or bunkers neatly camouflaged in a 30-minute walk into the jungle in different directions. There were also several camps within the jungle. The fact that this amount of drugs was found in several locations means that it was waiting for the transshipment… They were waiting for the opportune moment. That’s why I said we were very successful not just in seizing but detecting a new concealment method [and got] an idea as to how big the network is,” Singh explained.
The CANU Head further revealed that when the Joint Services ranks first arrived in the area a few days ago, they observed several persons who escaped into the vast jungle. However, the ranks managed to apprehend one suspect who has since been taken into custody.
Singh pointed out that this successful operation was a direct result of the support that the Guyana Government gives to the local Joint Services to combat the narcotics trade here. He also underscored the importance of collaboration with international partners.
“This is why international collaboration is important because based on the experience of our counterparts in the DEA, we were able to share information, share intelligence and do operations such as this that have resulted in a large seizure of drugs with the assistance of the Joint Services,” he noted.
Similar sentiments were echoed by Home Affairs Minister, Robeson Benn, who joined law enforcement officers in Region One on Sunday to witness the destruction of what is described as the largest seizure of cocaine locally and possibly regionally. He explained that they lacked the resources and proper logistics to transport the narcotics from the hinterland location hence the decision was taken to have them destroyed on site.
In fact, the narcotics were removed from the bunkers and destroyed but not before samples were collected for further testing and analysis. It is based on these further tests; it was determined the origin of the drugs.