Limited success against illegal fuel ships
- Customs chief
Stabroek News
October 16, 2002
The Customs department is making a “small impact” in its war against fuel smuggling but it is continuing to work with other enforcement agencies to arrest the scourge.
Responding to a question at a press briefing on Monday, Commissioner of Customs and Trade Administration (CTA), Lambert Marks, acknowledged that the department was achieving limited success with smuggling especially as regards to fuel.
In recent times, the Guyana Defence Force GDF Coast Guard has been successful in nabbing two vessels ferrying fuel from neighbouring Venezuela illegally.
The matter is currently in the courts.
Marks said the CTA is working to strengthen its relationship with the Coast Guard while recognising certain limitations.
The Coast Guard Head Terence Pile in a recent interview had said that there needed to be cooperation between the law enforcement entities to ensure that the issue of smuggling is arrested.
The smuggling of fuel from Venezuela is said to be big business with several persons mostly from the Essequibo Coast and Pomeroon engaged in the activities.
They use unsafe vessels with outboard engines to ship their consignments from Venezuela for resale at various outlets along the Pomeroon and even as far as Parika in Region 3 (Essequibo Islands/West Demerara).