A team of officers made another narcotics seizure yesterday, during an intelligence-led operation, which netted $.5 million worth of high-grade marijuana.
The illegal narcotics were seized in a package from the United States. This comes on the heels of another similar successful exercise on Wednesday, where over $.5 million worth of cocaine was seized in a shipment bound for Antigua.
Commissioner of Police, Erla Harewood-Christopher commented, “We are all familiar with the damage and carnage caused by the illegal drug trade, therefore we will use every opportunity to push back, disrupt and destroy these drug trafficking networks. We are in relentless pursuit of these criminals and while I commend my officers for their good work, they assured me that they are committed to the cause and will not be satisfied until these criminals are brought to justice.”
An intelligence unit of the TTPS gathered information which indicated that a drug trafficking network based in the Southern Division used local courier services to import narcotics concealed amongst legitimate cargo. The intelligence unit then developed further leads with the assistance of regional and international law enforcement partners.
Based on the information acquired, the intelligence unit along with officers from the Eastern Division, conducted an exercise at a courier service facility. A shipment from the United States of America, destined for an area in South Trinidad, was intercepted. The shipment consisted of a music box, which when scanned, led to the detection of certain anomalies. The officers searched the package and discovered two kilogrammes of high-grade marijuana, with an estimated street value of $500,000, concealed in the music box.
Investigations are ongoing at this time.