THE Guyana Revenue Authority (GRA) has unearthed cocaine pellets

having a street value of some Gy$2.5B concealed in a container purportedly containing fish food destined for China.
This discovery was made yesterday morning during a routine secondary examination of containers awaiting dispatch at the Guyana National Shipping Corporation (GNSC) wharf in Georgetown.
The drugs were discovered by officers of the GRA’s Drug Enforcement Unit (DEU) and Goods Examination (GEU) units after the container, packed with bags of fish food, had been flagged for secondary examination by the Container Scanner Unit.
Examination of the container was conducted in the  presence of Mr. Gilbert Bristol of Lot 154 Garnett Street, Newtown, Kitty, Georgetown, its shipper.
The cocaine, in the form of pellets (disguised as fish food), was discovered so far in eight (8) of fifteen hundred (1500) bags of fish food consigned to Angel International Logistics Ltd in China.
The Customs Anti-Narcotics Unit was alerted of the find, and when they came on the scene, took possession of the narcotics. The shipper and his assistant have been detained, and are assisting with investigations as the DEU continues with the examination of cargo in the presence of CANU.
Recently, officers of CANU teamed up with GRA officials to train several of their counterparts in the DEU in detection of narcotics; and the officers were given testing kits which were used to test the suspected substance.
The GRA wishes to, once again, commend officers of the DEU for their diligence.

A BUST IN BERBICE
Meanwhile, police yesterday arrested three persons following a cocaine bust in Berbice in which 90 grammes of the illicit substance were found during a search.
Police report that, at about 06:15hrs on December 7, ranks conducted a search on a residence at Port Mourant, Corentyne and unearthed a total of 90 grammes of cocaine, found wrapped in foil paper and hidden among some plants.
Three men and a woman have been arrested, and are in police custody assisting with the investigations.

COCAINE IN MACARONI BOXES HEADED TO CANADA
Meanwhile, Police reported that, acting on information received, at about 03:30 hours on December 06, Narcotics Branch ranks at the CJIA searched several boxes of mangoes consigned for shipment to Canada, and unearthed a total of 21 kilogrammes, 874 grammes of cocaine concealed in macaroni boxes among the mangoes.
Four men have been arrested and are in police custody assisting with that probe.

COCAINE IN SOAP POWDER
On November 30, CANU destroyed some 327 kilogrammes of cocaine found at the John Fernandes Limited wharf in soap powder headed to Niger in Africa. That find resulted from an inspection, and police were able to nab the shipper.

COCAINE IN COCONUT MILK
Recently, US$7.1M worth of cocaine was intercepted in tinned coconut milk before it left for Malaysia, and two men have been charged with that trafficking.
Over the years, and through local seaports and airports, narcotic drugs — mostly cocaine — have been sent abroad from Guyana in lumber, pepper sauce, coconut milk, soap power and other merchandise destined for foreign markets.