Barbados Customs seizes 12 guns and $8m in drugs in border crackdown

Barbados Customs officers have intercepted 12 firearms, 900 rounds of ammunition and nearly 1,000 kg of plant material worth $8m. Acting Comptroller Lynette Padmore also flagged over $3bn in lost revenue.

Barbados border haul: firearms, cocaine and nearly a tonne of plant material seized

Barbados Customs officers have seized 12 firearms, approximately 900 rounds of ammunition and close to 1,000 kilograms of plant material, according to Barbados Today. The plant material alone carries an estimated street value of around $8 million.

Acting Comptroller of Customs Lynette Padmore disclosed the figures on Sunday while addressing the Barbados Customs and Excise Department's 121st anniversary church service at Power in the Blood Assembly, Tudor Bridge, St Michael. Officers had also intercepted cocaine, methamphetamines, tactical gear, camouflage, tasers and drones.

Teams deployed at the air and sea ports and the General Post Office were responsible for recovering the seized items.

Padmore warned that smugglers were exploiting every available route to move illegal shipments through the island's ports. "Most territories now face similar challenges, and Barbados will remain exposed to these evolving threats if every agency operates with a singular mentality," she said.

She added that the porosity of Barbados's borders and limited awareness of some synthetic drugs remained persistent concerns. "The level of awareness relevant to some synthetic drugs and the porosity of our borders will continue to be problematic should we not collectively reinforce our intention towards the protection of our borders," Padmore said.

Interagency operations yielding results

Customs is actively collaborating with local, regional and international law enforcement agencies through targeted operations. Padmore highlighted the department's participation in Operation Calypso and Operation Core 8 in 2025, describing both as effective in disrupting narcotics trafficking, financial crimes and human trafficking.

"Interagency cooperation through planned operations benefit from collaboration and the employment of various measures to assist with interdictions," she said.

$3 billion in revenue lost to waivers and fraud

Padmore disclosed that Customs collected $5.47 billion in revenue between the 2023 financial year and July 2026. However, she said more than $3 billion in potential revenue had been lost through concessions and waivers granted to the business community, compounded by fraudulent practices including undervaluation and under-invoicing of imports.

"This figure could have been higher were it not affected by the loss of over $3 billion in revenue which has been foregone through concessions and waivers to the business community or from the fraudulent tax evasion practices of undervaluation and under-invoicing which continues to threaten the financial systems and mutual trust between Customs and some of our stakeholders," she said.

Staff losses and training push

The department is contending with a knowledge gap following the retirement of several experienced officers. "We now have quite a few relatively new staff who are now learning the fundamentals of Customs. Training is therefore essential at this juncture, and we are meeting it head on," Padmore said.

Eighteen officers are scheduled to begin an intensive valuation training workshop in association with the Caribbean Regional Technical Assistance Centre. The wider department is expected to participate in the National Transformation Initiative's Art and Heart of Service culture shift programme.

Officers have already received training in small arms and light weapons identification, illicit trafficking methods, the use of 3D printers for illicit firearm manufacturing, specialised marine enforcement, synthetic drug detection, artificial intelligence in cybersecurity and data analytics.

Modernisation and reputation rebuilding

Padmore said Customs was pursuing further technological modernisation, with its information technology team working to incorporate artificial intelligence and smart systems to improve operational efficiency.

She acknowledged that the department had faced sustained public criticism and called on staff to collectively change course. "We are aware that recent times have caused this department to be constantly criticised and to be the subject of unfavourable responses which must now be adjusted," she said.

Padmore said the department's core values of professionalism, integrity, accountability and transparency would guide its path forward. "Our core values of professionalism, integrity, accountability and transparency must guide our approach to our daily tasks, and like a phoenix, we will rise again," she said.

She framed the challenges facing Customs — limited resources, revenue leakage, undervaluation of imports and heightened national security threats from narcotics, firearms and human trafficking — as interconnected problems requiring unified responses across agencies and within the department itself.

Source: Barbados Today