Brazilian national held with large quantity of raw gold and over $17M in cash

A Brazilian national, who operates a shop in Region 8, has been arrested by the Special Organised Crime Unit for alleged gold smuggling and money laundering.

In a statement today, the Police said in a major intelligence-led joint operation conducted on Wednesday, officers of the Special Organised Crime Unit (SOCU) arrested Osmil Da Silva at his business place.

The Police said a substantial quantity of raw gold, equipment, documents and over $17 million in cash were seized during the operation.

According to the Head of SOCU, Deputy Commissioner Fazil Karimbaksh, SOCU officers were able to disrupt an alleged illegal smuggling operation before the gold could be moved across the border.

The Police said the latest success is part of the continued efforts by law enforcement agencies to disrupt the illicit gold trade and safeguard Guyana’s mineral resources, adding that the outcome of the operation reinforces the seriousness with which national security agencies are responding to illegal mining and smuggling activities.

SOCU said the incident also adds to a growing list of cases involving Brazilian nationals operating unlawfully within Guyana’s gold-mining regions.

In March 2025, two Brazilian nationals were arrested in Lethem, Region 9, during an operation that led to the seizure of a large quantity of gold and over $26 million in cash.

In a separate operation in April, two more Brazilian nationals, along with a Cuban national and a Guyanese, were taken into custody after authorities confiscated more than $30 million in gold and $31 million in cash.

The Government has been stepping up efforts to curb the illegal gold trade that has been taking place in many of the bordering communities where mining is done.

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