A key officer of the Police Narcotics Division was earlier this week transferred to the Berbice area as the Customs Anti Narcotics Unit (CANU) investigates the disappearance of a quantity of cocaine that was evidence in a recently discharged court matter.
Reports are that the move was sparked by the efforts of junior ranks within the division to uplift ‘bribe monies” owed to them by the officer which were paid by drug traffickers in connection with a drug bust made last year in Region Seven.
The police had arrested several persons in connection with the bust in which several buckets filled with drugs were discovered in a boat heading up a river in the Region Seven area.
The case, Stabroek News was reliably informed, was recently dismissed.
When contacted yesterday, Crime Chief Seelall Persaud confirmed that the senior officer was transferred.
He denied any knowledge about the transfer being associated with a matter being currently investigated by CANU.
He noted that transfers within the Force are a normal practice.
A CANU source told this newspaper yesterday that members of the underworld informed a senior official at the Home Affairs Ministry recently that they were being harassed by several police officers in connection with the dismissal of the case.
The men alleged that the officers informed that they were not being paid their cut in connection with the court matter and as such threatened to expose the matter.
The source explained that the ministry immediately launched a probe into the matter and called on CANU to investigate the matter. It was reported by the source that the officers may have provided incorrect information which led to the matter before the courts being dismissed.
The source said that it was subsequently discovered that the illegal substance was missing from the police narcotics division.
According to the source, the matter was being kept under wraps following recent scams which were unearthed within the force.
