Suriname appealing to drug lords due to poor border security

PARAMARIBO/BELEM – The federal police of Brazil recently confirmed that two big drug busts that took place recently are connected. Reports indicate that 2,158 kilograms of cocaine was seized in total. There are strong indications that the cocaine was smuggled in boats from Suriname to Belém. A Dutchman with Surinamese roots was reportedly arrested on drug trafficking charges. Brazil’s media company Globo reported that the big drug lords from South America are moving their operations to Suriname due to the poor border security and the lack of surveillance. In the past drugs were smuggled from Colombia to Brazil via the rain forest but due to the increasing presence of Brazilian military troops at the border, the Colombians have chosen Suriname as their way station to Europe. According to research that was conducted by Globo, the drugs are smuggled from Suriname to French Guyana before ending up in France via the FélixÉboué Airport. The authorities in France are constantly on the lookout for drug mules who travel from Suriname to France via French Guyana. In response to the increased surveillance the drug traffickers have reportedly opted to the Northern part of Brazil before reaching Spain via Portugal. 600 kilograms of cocaine were recently intercepted and confiscated at a Brazilian island last week. The narco submarine that was intercepted in Suriname in March 2018 evidently backs up the theories that Colombian drug lords are seeking alternate routes. There are strong suspicions that the narco submarine would head for Africa. Four years ago a narco sub was also seized in neighboring Guyana. On August 14, 2014 Guyana’s Customs Anti Narcotics Unit (CANU) and the Guyana Defence Force (GDF) found a semi-submersible vessel in a tributary of the Waini River near the country’s northwest border with Venezuela, reported the Guyana Times.

The vessel was reportedly the first of its kind discovered on the Atlantic side, and investigators believed it was part of a large-scale operation that may have been planning to use the semi-submersible to ship drugs to Europe or Africa. The vessel — which measured 20 meters long and 4 meters wide — was made out of fiberglass and contained a large diesel engine and navigation equipment. Although a camp and workshop were discovered near the semi-submersible, no arrests were made during the operation.