GEORGETOWN, Guyana — Authorities in Guyana on Saturday destroyed nearly a metric ton of narcotics seized in recent operations, reaffirming the country’s intensified stance against drug trafficking and transnational crime.
The Customs Anti-Narcotics Unit (CANU) incinerated approximately 926.56 kilograms of drugs—including 618.26 kilograms of cocaine and 308.3 kilograms of cannabis—valued at more than $4 billion (US$19.3 million). The destruction, conducted under tight supervision along Homestretch Avenue in Georgetown, followed court authorization and strict procedural checks.
CANU Director James Singh said every substance was verified and accounted for before disposal. “This is not just a symbolic exercise—each kilogram represents a life protected, a community made safer, and a criminal enterprise dismantled,” Singh told reporters.
Home Affairs Minister Oneidge Walrond, who observed the process, said the exercise underscored Guyana’s zero-tolerance approach to using its territory as a narcotics transshipment route. “When traffickers see hundreds of millions of dollars literally going up in smoke, they understand that Guyana is serious about defending its borders and communities,” she said.
Most of the cocaine seized had been bound for Europe, the Caribbean, and Africa, where it could have fetched up to €40,000 per kilogram, officials said. The interdictions followed a series of coordinated operations along coastal ports and interior airstrips, part of an expanded national strategy against organized crime.
Singh said CANU’s work is increasingly intelligence-led, combining surveillance, analytics, and forensic technology. The unit has strengthened ties with international agencies including SEACOP, COPOLAD, the Regional Security System, and the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration.
“Thanks to government support, we’re now in a position to prevent shipments before they happen,” Singh said, adding that continued public cooperation remains key to long-term success.
Officials say the destruction exercise, though routine, is part of a broader government-backed push to modernize law enforcement, reinforce accountability, and safeguard communities from the social and economic harm of the drug trade.