Less than four hours after Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar expressed shock at a major drug and weapons haul near her Philippine, San Fernando home on Thursday, police made further inroads into the transhipment operation when they uncovered another stash of drugs and ammunition in Debe.
Saying that the latest find was even closer to Persad-Bissessar’s home, a senior officer said yesterday that the arrest of the 27-year-old US deportee responsible for the operations puts a major dent in the distribution of cocaine and marijuana in South Trinidad.
It was just Tuesday that police caught the suspect cooking $1.6 million in cocaine in two aluminium pots at his Hermitage Village, San Fernando home, where they also seized $100,000 worth of marijuana and four high-powered guns with ammunition.
On Thursday night, Southern Division police, led by Snr Supt Irwin Hackshaw, Supt Florence Hodge Griffith and Insp Don Gajadhar, got further information that the suspect had another apartment along the SS Erin Road.
Around 7 pm, a CID team, including Sgt Steve Persad, Sgt Dale Ramroop, Cpl Marlon Mendoza and PCs Moses, Douglas and Rampersad, went to the apartment with the suspect. In one room they found seven rounds of .38 ammunition, 21 rounds of 9 mm ammunition, the butt for an AK-47 assault rifle and four magazines, one of which is used with the high-powered, automatic pistol used by the US Secret Service and FBI.
Three blocks of high grade kush cannabis (marijuana) worth $120,000 was found in another area.
“We believe we have made a big dent in a drug transshipment operation, as there were kilos of wrapping that the drugs came in, crocus bags, foil and thousands of small plastic bags around the apartment. We believe he is an importer and distributor of cocaine and high grade marijuana,” a senior officer said.
The suspect, who was also arrested in Princes Town during the 2011 state of emergency, is expected to appear at the San Fernando Magistrates Court on Tuesday, charged with two counts of possession of ammunition, two counts of possession of marijuana for trafficking, possession of firearm components, possession of cocaine for trafficking and possession of four firearms. The charges were laid by PCs Bacchus and Goddard.