Cops destroy $35m in marijuana trees

In what is being described as one of the biggest marijuana busts in south Trinidad, police officers destroyed thousands of fully-grown trees and seedlings, valued at approximately $35 million, yesterday. The nine-hour bust, in a forested area in Quinam, followed two months of surveillance by officers of the Siparia CID and South Western Task Force Division.

Around 4 am yesterday, the party of officers, including Cpls Solomon and Khan, PCs Smith and Prince, went ten miles into the Quinam forest where they discovered five marijuana plantations, with fully-grown trees.

During the exercise spearheaded by Supt Hugh Lovell and acting Supt Franklyn Sampath, officers also destroyed a makeshift camp and arrested a 49-year-old man who they said were tending to the illegal herbs. They also seized a cache of arms and ammunition and diffused ten trap guns. A pistol with seven rounds of 9 mm ammunition, 16 twelvegauge cartridges and six 16-gauge cartridges were seized.