Officers of the Jamaica Constabulary Force, Superintendent Marlon Dietrich and Corporal Sylvester Grant with 336 pounds of ganga seized on a boat near Kingston en route from Grfuyna to Trinidad

Officers of the Jamaica Constabulary Force, Superintendent Marlon Dietrich and Corporal Sylvester Grant with 336 pounds of ganja seized on a boat yesterday near Kingston, en route from Guyana to Trinidad. - Photo by Ross Sheil

Compressed ganja worth an estimated US$536,000 (J$32 million) was seized yesterday by the Jamaican marine police on a ship destined for Trinidad. This is the second such incident within a week.

The police were carrying out a routine patrol boarded the 250-foot Guyanese ship MV Alexis T yesterday between 11:30 a.m. and 12:00 midday when they discovered the contraband. The vessel was delivering a shipment of rice from Guyana at the Flour Mills terminal in Rockfort, East Kingston, after which it would depart for Trinidad.

Guyanese held

Two Guyanese crew members were arrested, after both of them were found with three bags estimated to contain 335 pounds of compressed ganja. Both were served with four charges: possession, taking steps to export, dealing and trafficking, in ganja.

"Lately, we've been discovering that vessels leaving here for Trinidad are being targeted by persons smuggling drugs like the ganja found on the vessel behind Petrojam which was destined for Trinidad ... so apparently they have ways of getting it from Trinidad to the States," said Superintendent Marlon Dietrich of the Marine division of the Jamaica Constabulary Force.

In that bust last week two canisters containing 300 pounds of ganja were found attached to the hull of a tanker which was delivering crude oil from Trinidad to the Petrojam refinery on Marcus Garvey Drive.

Following that bust Supt. Dietrich had promised to increase coastal surveillance as traffickers, forced by tighter port and airport security, had begun returning to such traditional methods.

According to Supt. Dietrich the Marine Division is becoming more successful, thanks to the provision of new boats, enabling them to check more vessels.

The captain of the MV Alexis T, which is owned by B.K. Marine International of Guyana, told The Gleaner that the incident was the first of its kind in his five years at the company.