…says bulk of drugs originates from Venezuela for transshipment
Director of the Customs Anti-Narcotic Unit (CANU), James Singh, has warned that drug traffickers are intensifying efforts to use Guyana as a gateway for cocaine shipments to Europe and beyond but insisted that robust enforcement, international partnerships, and public vigilance are preventing Guyana from sliding into narco-state status.
Singh has also revealed that the majority of the narcotics in Guyana originate from Venezuela for transshipment to other parts of the world, such as North America, West Africa and Europe.
Speaking during this week’s ‘Safeguarding Our Nation’ – a state-produced programme – Singh explained that because of the country’s geographical location, it is caught between suppliers of drugs in the region and consumers on other continents.
Singh said that the threat from transnational cartels is constantly evolving. While Guyana is not a producer of cocaine, he explained that its location makes it highly vulnerable.
“Guyana, because of its geographic location, is caught between the suppliers in the Andean region and consumers on other continents,” Singh said. “Recently, there’s been a shift. Now, drugs are still coming into Guyana and then transhipped towards West Africa and Europe.”
The shift, he noted, is a direct result of tighter patrols in the Caribbean basin, forcing traffickers to seek “the path of least resistance”.
CANU has recorded some of the region’s most significant drug busts in recent years. Singh pointed to the seizure of a semi-submersible vessel constructed locally in 2014, another captured last year off the coast, and a dramatic raid that netted 4.4 tonnes of cocaine at an illegal airstrip.
International cooperation has also paid off. “We seized 4.7 tonnes of cocaine on board a vessel that had departed from Guyana… and we trapped it all the way to West Africa,” Singh recalled.
These busts underscore traffickers’ growing sophistication. CANU has documented smuggling attempts via low-flying aircraft, contaminated shipping containers, and even semi-submersible submarines.
“How are we doing it? Intelligence. We’re working through informants, undercover operations, and sharing of information again from our colleagues overseas, as well as working with various communities. The public. The public plays a vital role in intelligence sharing. It’s one of our greatest partners. Whether it’s a phone call or persons in communities, if they see something or hear something, they call it in. Basically, what we do is do the right thing, and that has helped us tremendously in the fight against narcotics,” he said.
Not alone
Singh emphasised that Guyana’s fight is not waged alone. CANU works closely with U.S., British, Canadian, Brazilian, Colombian, and Caribbean counterparts in what he described as an unprecedented level of collaboration.
“Partnerships are key in the fight against drug trafficking,” he stressed. “The partnerships are a testimony to the international respect and confidence, not only in Guyana, but in CANU’s willingness to combat the drug trade.”
One such operation, dubbed Operation Zeus, brought together 31 countries to destroy 31 illegal airstrips and seize more than 3.5 tonnes of cocaine in the region.
While high-profile raids grab headlines, Singh was adamant that everyday citizens remain the unit’s strongest ally.
“We couldn’t do this job without the public support, the public assistance,” he said. “We have several operations that are credited to someone in a community picking up the phone and calling, sharing a tip.”
CANU also runs outreach programmes in schools and communities under its “Hearts and Minds” campaign, aimed at prevention through awareness.
“If we can sensitise you to what the dangers are, the effects on you, on the community, and obviously the country as a whole, that proactive approach is very impactful,” Singh explained.
The fight is far from over. CANU said it is confronting a surge of synthetic drugs such as MDMA and high-potency marijuana from abroad, alongside increasingly sophisticated concealment tactics.
“No longer are persons trying to hide cocaine in wood or fish,” Singh noted. “They’re contaminating commercial shipments after they would have been scanned… or loading vessels off the coast after they leave Guyana.”
Singh added that the ultimate mission is ensuring Guyana does not fall prey to the same fate as countries overrun by cartels.
According to the CANU Director, the majority of drugs comes into Guyana from Venezuela.
“It doesn’t help that it’s a narco-state and claims two-thirds of our territory, but it comes from Venezuela by plane or by boat to be further transhipped. Some is remaining here, and as I said, some is transhipped, the majority being transhipped to other territories,” he noted.
“We are trying to ensure that Guyana does not become a haven, does not become a narco state that drug trafficking organisations see here as a bad place to do business,” he said. “Because of two reasons: CANU’s zeal to fight drugs, but also the Government’s commitment to ensuring that Guyana does not become a narco state.”
In his view, he said the fight against narcotics is not only about seizures and arrests; it is about protecting Guyana’s borders, reputation, and communities.
“CANU isn’t just about conducting seizures,” Singh concluded. “It’s safeguarding Guyana’s borders, reputation, and communities. Its work is a vital part of national security.”
