BASSETERRE, St. Kitts – JUST one day after the police had recorded one of the largest drug bust in the history of the twin-island Federation, another significant one was made yesterday (Nov. 14) in Basseterre and four individuals, including two nationals of the Dominican Republic, are in custody.
A police release stated that at approximately 3:00 p.m. during a routine patrol along the Bay Road in Irish Town, members of the Special Services Unit and the Anti-Narcotics Unit had observed some suspicious activities in the vicinity of the Gardens Housing Project.
Monitoring the activities for some time, the officers observed a blue and white boat bearing the name Pearla Negra was very close to the shoreline.
Also while monitoring the activities, a man had exited a car that was parked in the immediate vicinity and an orange and white bucked was thrown to him by one of two individuals aboard the vessel.
Upon receipt of the bucket, the man ran towards the Garden’s Playfield with the officers in hot pursuit.
He was eventually caught and a search of the bucket revealed the find of one kilo of cocaine with a street value of EC$89,100.
Meanwhile, the boat with the two occupants was heading out to sea but was intercepted by a vessel from the St. Kitts and Nevis Coast Guard.
The two occupants, who disclosed that they are nationals of the Dominican Republic but are residing on Nevis, were taken into custody and are assisting the police with their investigations.
Consequently, a search by warrant was executed on the Salt Pond Alley residence of the man who was caught with the bucket that contained the cocaine, where 50.7 pounds of marijuana, with a street value of EC$380,250, were found.
He and another individual who was present at the residence during the search were also taken into police custody.
Charges against the four individuals would be made shortly, according to the release.
One member of the patrol had reportedly said: “The continued efforts by the officers of the Anti-Drug Unit are yielding results. This proactive and vigilant approach is working! Being out and about puts us in a position to react quickly. We are committed to this effort.”
The release noted that Assistant Commissioner of Police with responsibility for Crime, Ian Queeley said. “This is encouraging! We have had some success in our Anti-Drug efforts in recent weeks. We had a significant seizure in Nevis on Friday, yesterday (November 13), and now today in St. Kitts. The teams are committed, they are embracing and utilizing the training they have received. This is a good indication...we are on the right track.”
Queeley also reportedly said it is a real life example of what the Police Force intended when the Six-Point Plan was designed. “The strategy of collaboration with other agencies was clearly at work today. We called on the Coast Guard to intercept a small craft and they were on the ball. Supporting each other leads to success.”
The ACP is urging anyone with information that could assist the police in their fight against crime to call any police station in the Federation or Crime Stoppers at 1-800-8477 to share information, adding that “the information is critical to keeping St. Kitts and Nevis safe”.
At 12:15 p.m. on Friday (Nov. 13), members of the Anti-Narcotics Unit, Special Services Unit (SSU) and the Nevis Task Force had conducted a search on the Cherry Gardens residence of Patricesia James and found the illegal drugs, which have a street value of EC$7.75M.
Eight days earlier, members of the SSU, Anti-Drug Unit and the Strategic Intelligence Unit with assistance from the Nevis Division, had conducted a series of vehicular stop and search operations in the Federation, which resulted in two separate drug busts.
One of the searches was conducted in the Southeast Peninsula area and realised the find of 13.5 kilos of compressed marijuana, with a street value of EC$450,000, while the other was in Basseterre, where 6.4 grams of cocaine and 762 grams of marijuana were found. The two illegal drugs have a combined street value of EC$49,908.
The total street value of the drugs seized by the police during the 10-day operation is EC$8,269,258.
