— former Suriname justice minister

FORMER Surinamese Justice Minister, Chandrikapersad Santokhi, has said that coordination among law-enforcement agencies is key to bringing crime under control.

He offered this view while delivering the feature address at a fund-raising dinner hosted by Transparency Institute of Guyana Inc (TIGI) at the Pegasus Hotel on Saturday evening.
“Some amount of coordination between Guyana and Suriname led to the capture of Roger Khan,” said Santokhi, who noted that the Surinamese Government had to find a comprehensive programme to fight crime and it also benefitted Guyana.

Santokhi said there was a “serious and comprehensive” approach to all types of crime and criminals and in 2003-2006, many kingpins were arrested, including Khan.
He also believed that the regional and international justice systems did their job in prosecuting Khan and other criminals.

“That is how the judicial and legal system is working… nationally, regionally and internationally,” the former justice minister said.
Asked how he had responded to threats against his life then, Santokhi said, international agencies dealt with those threats.

Back in 2003-2006, Khan had set up a criminal network here, including active policemen and a number of former ranks, ostensibly to go after criminals, but at the same time, to also protect his narco-trafficking interests.
He was nabbed in neighbouring Suriname in 2006 while fleeing local police, and was later handed over to U.S. authorities.

Although the PPP government had sought to distance itself from Khan, the drug-trafficker had stated publicly, in an advertisement in local newspapers, that he had been fighting crime on behalf of the Bharrat Jagdeo-led government.

Khan had also implicated former Health Minister, Dr Leslie Ramsammy, in his escapades; documents bearing the then minister’s signature authorising the purchase of a sophisticated wire-tapping device, were produced in U.S. courts during Khan’s trial.