BY JOEY BARTLETT
A 48-hour police blitz stretching from Beetham Gardens to Tobago has dismantled a multi-divisional crime network, netting three illegal firearms, a cache of narcotics, and 10 Venezuelan nationals.
A police media release describes it as a coordinated strike, dubbed Operation Steady GUARD, which saw officers from the North Eastern Division (NED) Task Force and the Port of Spain Division descend on several “high-priority” districts between March 28 and the morning of March 29.
Whilst searching a bushy area in Morvant on Saturday afternoon, NED officers recovered a chrome and black Mauser HSC .380 pistol, complete with a magazine and three rounds of ammunition. The find was part of an intelligence-led exercise targeting known offenders in San Juan, Barataria, and Morvant.
The crackdown intensified in Barataria, where the Canine Unit led officers to a house on 6th Street. There, police discovered nearly 400 grammes of cannabis stashed in a bedroom. A 30-year-old man was hauled into custody and charged with possession of marijuana.
The heat moved to the Port of Spain Division on Sunday morning, as officers raided two establishments in the capital and St James. The operation, which targeted illicit activities, resulted in the arrest of eight Venezuelan men and two women for illegal entry.
Meanwhile, a separate “State Of Emergency” exercise in the Hellyard area of Beetham Gardens yielded a black plastic bag containing two silver and black pistols and 11 rounds of nine mm ammunition.
The weekend of heavy policing followed a series of Friday, March 27, raids across the Central and South Western Divisions.
In Central, a 49-year-old woman from Chase Village was arrested for possession of cocaine for the purpose of trafficking, while a 39-year-old Las Lomas man was held with 98 grammes of cannabis.
Further south, the South Western Division recorded a breakthrough in a warrant exercise covering Siparia, Penal, and Point Fortin. Police executed 38 warrants and arrested 22 people for various offences, including assaulting police officers and failing to attend court.
The dragnet continued in Tobago, where Crown Point police acting on a “tip-off” arrested a 34-year-old Canaan man on Saturday morning. He was allegedly found with 77.6 grammes of cannabis and a quantity of cash.
The weekend operation was spearheaded by Deputy Commissioner Suzette Martin, Assistant Commissioner Henry, and Senior Superintendent Thom. The exercises are part of an ongoing strategy to “reclaim the streets”.
