A 53-year-old Colombian man will return to court on September 7, after he was remanded to the Dodds prison in Barbados on Wednesday on several drug-related charges arising out of a multi-billion-dollar drug bust.
Oswaldo Rafael Acosta Aroca of 20 De Octubre, Santa Marta, Colombia, appeared before Magistrate Douglas Frederick at the District ‘B’ Magistrates’ Court charged with unlawful possession of cannabis; trafficking cannabis; possession with intent to supply cannabis; disembarking without the consent of an immigration officer and entering Barbados other than a port of entry.
The authorities said that the drugs weighing 422.6 kilograms were worth an estimated BDS$3.38 million (One Barbados dollar=US$0.50 cents).
The accused, who was represented by attorney Shadia Simpson, was not required to plead to the indictable charges.
Last weekend, the Trinidad and Tobago Police Service (TTPS) issued a statement in Port of Spain stating that a Colombian had been arrested and marijuana with a street value of TT$72.04 million (One TT$=US$0.37 cents) seized following months of surveillance, intelligence gathering and collaboration with regional law enforcement agencies.
It said the investigation had started in June 2020, when TTPS officers began investigations into a person of interest who was suspected of controlling a drug ring based in Central Trinidad with regional and international links, according to a TTPS statement.
The TTPS said the suspect and another man then boarded a flight to Barbados in late June 2022, Barbados law enforcement was notified, and their assistance was requested.
“The TTPS continued gathering intelligence and maintained relations with Barbados law enforcement, and as a result discovered that on July 29, a shipment of drugs landed in Barbados.
“This intelligence was further developed and on August 2, Barbados law enforcement breached the “stash house” in Barbados where they found and seized 481kilogrammes of marijuana with a street value of TT $72,063,420. “
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