Customs Working Hard to Curb Drug Trafficking

By Mellica McPherson

In a lengthy document titled Customs 2003 Annual Report, that was laid on the table at 1 November sitting of the Legislative Council officials from the department stated that “links between smugglers and drug dealers in the BVI and USVI  have certainly strengthened from 2000 and remain strong. They have led to a very serious and worrying increase in the use of firearms and violence.”

The Report mentioned that there was a dramatic change in cartel drug smuggling trends in 2003. In fact, there was a change from transporting drugs using ‘airdrops’ to the use of small ‘go-fast’ and sail boats which stashed the drugs in remote areas on the islands. The actual quantities of drugs detected showed a marked decrease from previous years, this being due to a shift by the cartels from the ‘BVI route” to smuggling routes direct into Haiti and the Dominican Republic.

In the Report, Customs officials stressed that drug smugglers have become more sophisticated in their methodology than in the past years.  It was discovered that the smugglers now use techniques such as the concealment of true ownership of assets, use of surveillance equipment, and formation of informant networks. In addition to that the smugglers have modern weapons and a willingness to use them.

“The present and future estimates drug threat to this small territory is a primary risk to the well being of the Territory,” the Report noted.

Future Trends

It was explained that because of its geographical location the Territory will remain under threat, especially since the USA is strengthening its controls on the Mexican border and is shifting its resources to block entry to Hispaniola, and Puerto Rico, use of the “BVI route” by drug cartels is likely to increase.

Meanwhile the Customs Department tries to foresee the methods the drug cartels will devise in the future and to anticipate the direction the main threat will come from. The Report explained that it is deemed likely that the trend of using the BVI as a point where drugs are stashed is likely to continue,  successfully decreasing only in direct proportion to any effective detections made by law enforcement agencies. It was also pointed out that even if the Department is successful in foiling out the ‘stash’ method, that still would not stop the smugglers as they will switch to a combination of ‘air drop’ and direct runs through the Territory by ‘go-fast’ vessels.

CHECKING YACHTS??

NOT  A GOOD IDEA!

The Report made a clear identification of one of the methods that drug smugglers use to get their illegal cargo in and out of the BVI. The identified means was the use of innocent looking yachts hiding among a sea of recreational yachts. This means of smuggling was proven in 1996, and the Department felt that it was likely to continue given the high number of such vessels in the BVI. The Report explained that carrying out searches on yachts that enter the BVI may have an adverse effect on tourism.

The main drug source risk points for the BVI is St. Maarten where cocaine is smuggled from; St. Kitts where cocaine and cannabis is smuggled; St. Vincent where cannabis is smuggled from; and Antigua where cocaine is smuggled from. The department estimates that St. Maarten will be the main ‘jumping off’ point in the region for cocaine and migrants. However, it was stated in the Report that there is and will continue to be law enforcement liaison between these countries and increased interdiction.

The Department promised that they will continue to check the traditional European drug concealment method such as containers, cargo vessels, yacht and body belts. Although the main thrust of enforcement will be against large consignments transported by sea, the tradition of transporting cocaine in large quantities (unlike heroin) is likely to continue due to the considerable size of the South American crop and the large demand.