– to boost investigations, prosecutions
Twenty-four local investigators are taking part in a US Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA)-run course here intended to strengthen the investigation and prosecution in narcotics cases.
The participants in the Drug Investigators’ Course are drawn from the Guyana Police Force (GPF), the Customs and Anti-Narcotics Unit (CANU) and the Guyana Revenue Authority (GRA) and US Ambassador to Guyana Brent Hardt yesterday said he hoped that it will lead to further training in other counternarcotics specialties, such as digital forensics, case development and court and legal skills.
The course is a collaborative effort between the Guyana Police Force and the DEA and will see the participants exposed to classroom and real-life exercises. Detective Constable Jirbahan Dianand, whowas executed in Berbice last week, was supposed to have been among the participants.
During brief remarks at the opening of the course at the Police Officers’ Mess Annexe, at Eve Leary, Hardt noted that the course marks the beginning of a new US fiscal year, during which his government will be “working hand in hand” with the local security forces, judicial systems, corrections institutions and the banking industry through the Caribbean Basin Security Initiative (CBSI).
Under the CBSI, the US and participating Caribbean are cooperating to reduce illicit trafficking, advance public safety and security, and promote social justice.
The current course, Hardt noted, is a part of the DEA’s ongoing joint efforts with GPF and CANU to combat the illegal drug trade and will enhance investigation capacities and ensure successful prosecutions.
Hardt also noted that the training is designed to compliment and support the August 20 launch of the US-funded Container Control Programme, which is being implemented by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime.
Guyana is one of the first countries in the Caribbean to participate in the programme, which will greatly enhance the ability of the country’s law enforcement authorities to intercept potential terrorist activities, combat the smuggling of narcotics and weapons, prevent the evasion of taxes and address the smuggling of chemical precursors for narcotics production, he said.
“The United States Embassy and the DEA are determined to ensure that our Guyanese partners have the necessary to do their jobs effectively,” he said adding that the total value of the equipment critical to conduct counternarcotics investigations being offered this fiscal year is US$44,560 ($9 million).
In addition to the opening of the course, photographic equipment was also handed over to the police force yesterday and Hardt said that these were only part of a broader and more comprehensive partnership and he affirmed a commitment to working with Guyana to ensure a safer and more prosperous environment for all. “We recognise that the drug trade destabilises economic progress, threatens public safety and makes it more likely that vulnerable populations may be lured into recruitment by criminal organisations,” he added, while noting that the US will continue to provide training, equipment and other resources to help Guyana fight the threats posed by the drug trade.
Also present at the course’s opening yesterday were Police Commissioner Leroy Brumell and CANU head James Singh.
