…Stephen Vieira still on the run
…CANU gets extension to hold suspects

The Customs Anti-Narcotics Unit (CANU) late Monday afternoon secured extensions of time to further keep in custody Nazim Gafoor and Hakim Mohamed,two of the suspects in the large cocaine bust at Zeelugt, East Bank Demerara last Friday and also arrested a third man.

According to a statement by CANU,the men are being held pending further investigations. According to CANU,sometime during Monday,Commander Leslie James of’D’ Division and his ranks arrested and handed over Tazim Gafoor to ranks of CANU. All three of the men will remain in custody pending further investigations.
In its statement,CANU said both Tazim Gafoor and his son Nazim GAFOOR have retained Counsel and are not assisting in investigations. Additionally, CANU said five of the individuals initially kept in custody since Friday,including the driver and the porters of the truck in question were expected to be released last evening on the expiration of the 72 hours since their initial detention. CANU said it has a digital video recording device retrieved from Nazim Gafoor at Vreed-en-Hoop,West Bank Demerara and hopes to find material of evidential value after due analysis.

Further, the unit said there was a batch of related dress wood from the very shipper that had already made it onto the wharf and which was retrieved by CANU.Each board is currently being drilled by ranks in the compound and thus far no further narcotics were found in the ones examined.
Up to press time no charge had been laid in this matter even as CANU says it was yet to locate popular motor racer, Stephen Vieira and Narine Lall. “CANU is hereby asking that anyone knowing their whereabouts to make contact with the nearest police station and or CANU Head Quarters on 226-0431,” the statement added.

CANU on Friday discovered some 84.986 kilograms of cocaine worth in excess of $550M in dressed lumber boards prepared for export to the USA.

According to a release, CANU ranks made the discovery after conducting a search at the parapet in front of the premises of one Akeem Mohamed at 227 Zeelugt, East Bank Essequibo. They searched a truck laden with several pallets of 1×6 dressed lumber boards. After several boards were drilled randomly, a whitish substance suspected to be cocaine was found.
“The truck, its driver and porters were escorted to CANU Headquarters where a detailed search of the cargo was completed. The said search revealed cocaine found in random boards scattered among genuine boards in each pallet.Each of the compromised boards had a dug out cavity with vacuum sealed plastic packets containing cocaine pasted therein. Discovered was a total of 84.986 kilograms of cocaine,having a landed US street value in excess of 550 million Guyana dollars,” the release said.

CANU said investigations have so far revealed that the truck was hired to pick up and transport the lumber from Lall’s sawmill at Lookout, East Bank Essequibo to the wharf at Georgetown.
“At this time, all porters and the truck driver are still in custody assisting in investigations that reveal a well-planned web of participants,” the anti-narcotics agency said.
It noted that popular racing popular motorcyclist Vieira is listed on shipping documents as the representative of Lall, the shipper.
“Naraine Lall based on investigations thus far is allegedly out of the jurisdiction as revealed by checks at his home for him.