Missing firearms from Police Armoury “on the road” – Minister Benn

…arsenal storage too small

Without going into much details about the intention to expand the space for the storage of the Guyana Police Force’s firearms, Home Affairs Minister Robeson Benn has indicated that the current space is too small, while adding that they are in receipt of intelligence that some of the guns missing from the Force’s armoury are “on the road.”
Benn made the disclosure on Wednesday on the sidelines of an event at the Arthur Chung Conference Centre.
It was reported that an audit into the Guyana Police Force revealed that over 150 firearms have vanished under the previous A Partnership for National Unity/Alliance For Change (APNU/AFC) Government.
The minister said he had visited the armoury in an effort to establish how the guns went missing.
“The investigation is still underway. I did visit the Police Armoury today (Wednesday) and the situation there is not encouraging with respect to the storage of the firearms (and) being able to recognise and retrieve them properly. Obviously, much more room is needed to store the firearms properly, have them properly labelled; and in terms of retrieving them, even though they have a computerised system, it has to be fully functional so that it could complement the book system they have there,” he informed.
Benn added that the audit into the Armoury is not yet completed.
“We know that some of these firearms are on the road, and a few have been identified as having come from the Police; and so, when we get more information, we will update. It is a question of space, of room. There is not enough room in the building. The building is very small to accommodate all the firearms that (are) there,” he posited.
Late last month, Crime Chief Wendell Blanhum informed Guyana Times that six ranks from the Tactical Services Unit (TSU) were taken into custody as part of the investigation into the disappearance of the firearms.
It is understood that the missing weapons were either seized from criminals and were to be exhibits in cases, or were firearms lodged by private citizens. Benn had assured that all efforts would be made to track down the firearms.
Under the previous A Partnership for National Unity/Alliance For Change (APNU/AFC) Government, Khemraj Ramjattan – who served as Minister of Public Security – had had oversight of the GPF. Efforts to contact him on the matter have proved futile.
In the past, guns that have gone missing from the hands of Joint Services personnel have subsequently been linked to criminal activities. During the 2018 Commission of Inquiry (CoI) into the Lindo Creek massacre, it was revealed that a number of weapons and ammunition which were stolen in February 2006 were later used in the commission of various crimes.
In February 2018, during his address at the opening of the Annual Police Officers’ Conference, then President David Granger had called for an incorruptible Police Force. He had said that Security Sector Reform, which his administration was committed to and was working on implementing, would seek to tackle this issue that is plaguing the country’s premier law enforcement agency. (G2)