GEORGETOWN – The Customs Anti-Narcotics Unit (CANU) has sought to distance Guyana from the discovery of approximately 1 100 pounds of cocaine discovered in Rotterdam last week in a shipping container with El Dorado Rum from the Caribbean country.
In a statement, CANU said that “there was no sign of tampering” of the container in Guyana and that after departing the country “the container transited another Caribbean territory where it was offloaded and remained for a period of five days before it was loaded onto another vessel and shipped to the Netherlands where the discovery was made”.
CANU did not name the other Caribbean country but one online publication reported that it stopped in the Dominican Republic before it was transported to The Netherlands.
CANU said that the shipment of rum was loaded in Guyana and all of the procedures were followed. “The container in question was scanned by the relevant law enforcement agencies, prior to departure and there were no contraband items concealed among the documented cargo.
“After the container was scanned, it was transported to a city wharf where it was stored in a secure area awaiting departure. Prior to departure as per standard operations procedure, a physical check would have been done to ensure that both the line and custom seals were intact and there was no sign of tampering,” CANU added.
CANU sought to assure Guyanese that the shipping container was at all times properly checked and secured before it was loaded on a ship.
It said law enforcement authorities remain committed to working together to ensure that narcotics are not transshipped through Guyana’s ports.
“Several initiatives have been put in place to prevent this from occurring along with the creation of several multi agency units tasked with implementing and enforcing the new security measures.”
CANU said it was also working with several local companies to assist in strengthening their security protocols at the various ports – air and sea, to ensure that their businesses are not used to facilitate the movement of narcotics and other contraband.
Authorities in The Netherlands last Thursday discovered over 1 100lbs of cocaine in a rum shipment that departed Guyana.
The Dutch authorities made the discovery of the cocaine among the boxes of rum when the shipment arrived at a port in The Netherlands on November 25. (CMC)
