The Government of Guyana is to seek additional information from the United States on the sanctions instituted by its Treasury Department’s on four Guyanese nationals including a Senior Superintendent of Police for their links to drug trafficking and a Colombian drug network. Two Colombian nationals were also named in the sanctions.

Speaking briefly to reporters on the issue last evening as he was leaving a reception, President Irfaan Ali said he has already spoken to the US Ambassador on the issue and information is being requested from the US on the sanctions.

“I have already spoken to the Ambassador, requesting all the information to be made available so that we can proceed with action”, he told reporters.

The Guyana Police Force announced on Thursday night that Senior Superintendent Himnauth Sawh has been sent on administrative leave following the announcement of him being sanctioned, along with three other Guyanese, by the United States for drug trafficking.

The President said Guyana and the United States have been partnering in the drug fight locally, and he made mention of the massive bust last year in Region One, which unearthed 4.4 tonnes of cocaine stashed near an illegal airstrip.

In a separate statement on Thursday night welcoming the US sanctions and also confirming the move to request additional information from the US on the sanctions, the Ministry of Home Affairs said the information from the US will be used to guide the actions of the Police Service Commission (PSC) and, by extension, the Government of Guyana on the issue.

The Ministry said the Government remains unwavering in its commitment to eradicate drug trafficking and dismantle criminal networks that facilitate these illegal activities.

It noted that through robust enforcement strategies and enhanced monitoring measures, authorities will continue to fully pursue and prosecute offenders.

The U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control named the Senior Superintendent of Police Himnauth Sawh along with businessman Paul Daby Jr., Mark Cromwell aka “Demon” of Buxton and Randolph Duncan aka Rudolph Duncan to its latest list of sanctioned individuals.

The four are linked to two Colombian nationals who have also been sanctioned by the US for drug trafficking and related crimes.

According to the Office of Foreign Assets Control, For decades, Guyana has been a transshipment point for the movement of drugs from South America to the United States and Europe.

The Office said Drug traffickers have been exploiting the rivers and jungles of South America by transiting large quantities of cocaine, from Colombia and Venezuela, through the waters of Guyana and Suriname.

The statement further indicated that Guyana’s proximity to the Caribbean, as well as reported corruption along its ports and borders, allow maritime vessels, also known as narco-submarines, to transit through its waters undetected.

The US said drug traffickers utilize the vessels to smuggle cocaine from the ports of Guyana and Suriname, across the Atlantic, to the United States, Europe, and the Caribbean.

It also noted that traffickers also coordinate the importation of cocaine loads from Colombia and Venezuela to Guyana via small aircraft, utilizing illegal airstrips in Guyana as landing spots.

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