Guyana police find 72 pounds of cocaine along Upper Demerara River trail

Officers found 72.1 pounds of cocaine after a driver fled into bushes along the Five Miles-Ituni Trail. Three more detained in a separate Bartica drugs bust.

Cocaine stash abandoned as driver flees Guyana police operation

Guyana police are investigating the discovery of 72.1 pounds (32.7 kg) of cocaine found last Friday along the Five Miles-Ituni Trail, Upper Demerara River, guardian.co.tt reports, citing the Caribbean Media Corporation.

During the operation, officers observed a motor pickup travelling out of the trail. Upon spotting the police, the driver brought the vehicle to a stop and fled into nearby bushes, abandoning the pickup.

A subsequent search of the vehicle turned up a large garbage bag on the floor behind the driver's seat. Inside were 30 rectangular parcels containing a whitish, rock-like substance suspected to be cocaine. The haul was escorted to the Mackenzie Police Station, where it was weighed at 72.1 pounds before being lodged pending further investigations.

Police did not provide a street value for the drugs. "No arrests have been made as investigations continue," the force said in a brief statement.

Three detained in separate Bartica narcotics case

In a separate incident, police detained three people in Bartica, Region Seven, following the discovery of nearly 10 pounds of cannabis and over two pounds of cocaine on Sunday.

Acting on information received, officers proceeded to a property where they made contact with a 38-year-old female dispatcher and conducted a search in her presence. In the front portion of the yard, they found a cardboard box wrapped in a plastic bag containing seven bulky parcels — six holding quantities of leaves, seeds, and stems suspected to be cannabis, and one containing a whitish, rock-like substance suspected to be cocaine.

The woman was arrested and escorted to the Bartica Police Station along with the suspected narcotics.

During further investigations, police apprehended a 43-year-old businessman from Vigilance, East Coast Demerara. The businessman was also wanted in connection with an existing arrest warrant relating to a separate narcotics matter.

At the time of his apprehension, he was in the company of a 36-year-old taxi driver. A search of the vehicle uncovered a plastic bag in the driver-side door pocket containing a whitish, rock-like substance suspected to be cocaine, which weighed 2.7 grams in the presence of the taxi driver. Both the taxi driver and the businessman were taken into custody in connection with the ongoing investigation.

Source: Google News GY — Crime