PORT OF SPAIN, Trinidad – The United States Tuesday said it remains Trinidad and Tobago’s “best and most reliable partner in the world” after law enforcement authorities from the two countries were involved in one of the largest drug bust in the Caribbean country’s history.
US Ambassador Candace Bond (CMC Photo)Police said last week that cocaine estimated at more than TT$234 million (One TT dollar=US$0.16 cents) had been seized and three people arrested during the joint operation at Chaguaramas west of here.
“The United States is Trinidad and Tobago’s best and most reliable partner in the world, and this seizure and solid arrest are tangible evidence that the US Embassy is delivering for the people of Trinidad and Tobago, as well as for the people of the United States,” US Ambassador Candace Bond said in a statement.
“I am proud of the six law enforcement agencies resident at the US Embassy, and the great work they perform at great risk to support Trinbagonian criminal investigations. We are partners in helping make Trinidad and Tobago safer for all of us who live here,” she added.
In the statement, the US Embassy said that personnel from the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) and the US Department of State’s Diplomatic Security Service (DSS) assisted the Special Investigations Unit (SIU) of the Trinidad and Tobago Police Service (TTPS) and the Transnational Organized Crime Unit (TOCU) in the investigation which culminated in the May 18 arrest of three Trinbagonian nationals, and seizure of one Glock pistol and approximately 168 kilograms of cocaine.
“By volume of the narcotics, this was the largest seizure of drugs during an on-land operation in Trinbagonian history,” the Embassy said, adding that the DEA Office personnel and TOCU have been working side by side for almost 20 years.
Police Commissioner Erla Harewood-Christopher said at the time of the eizure that “we have worked closely with our regional and international partners and our joint efforts resulted in what can be described as the largest land seizure of cocaine ever in Trinidad and Tobago.
“We will continue to partner with our law enforcement counterparts in the United States to wage a forceful and relentless war on the regional drug trafficking networks and those who profit from the illegal drug trade,” Harewood-Christopher said.
The authorities said that they had received information in March 2023, that a large shipment of cocaine was headed to the United States which led to the operation last week.
The persons arrested have not yet appeared in a court here.
