Cocaine vanishes from office of senior narcotics officer

Sep 28, 2017 News 1

Delvor Bunbury and Travis
Mendonca

A senior officer of the Guyana Police Force (GPF)’s Narcotics Branch is in some serious trouble after a large quantity of cocaine, tendered as evidence, disappeared from a storage room in his office, at the Criminal Investigation Department (CID), Eve Leary.
The exhibit, weighing almost four kilograms, was discovered missing from the Superintendent’s office on Tuesday.
According to information received, the illegal substance was supposed to be stored in the armory at the Tactical Service Unit—as is the norm.
However, the senior officer reportedly kept the cocaine, stored in a suitcase, in the storage room at his office.
A police source confirmed that the Superintendent is the only person who has keys to his office.
Kaieteur News was told that the illegal substance is related to the case involving ex-policeman Travis Mendonca, who was recently sentenced to three years in prison after cocaine was discovered stashed in a false bottom of his suitcase.
The ex-cop was preparing to board a New York bound flight when the discovery was made. What is strange is the fact that the cocaine was discovered missing the same day, a second suspect in the same case, 28-year-old Delvor Bunbury turned himself—almost two weeks after a wanted bulletin was issued for his arrest.
A police source, close to the investigation explained that when Bunbury turned himself into CID on Tuesday, the investigating ranks sent for the cocaine so that they could have weighed it in front of him (Bunbury) and read his arrest to him.
The source explained that the senior cop was informed that the cocaine was needed.
He reportedly took the illegal substance, in the suitcase, to the two ranks who requested it and allegedly walked away.
Seconds later when the ranks opened the suitcase, the substance was nowhere to be found.
The officer, who was then contacted, informed the ranks that he collected the suitcase and dropped it off; he did not check the suitcase to see if the substance was inside.
As customary, the senior officer was supposed to check the suitcase in front of the ranks he was handing it over to and allowed them to sign—but this was not done. Investigators checked his office but there was no sign of a break in.
Ranks, who are probing the case, believe that the cocaine disappeared from the senior officer’s office. It is also suspected that Bunbury only turned himself in because he knew the cocaine was gone.
Assistant Commissioner of Police, David Ramnarine confirmed that the GPF’s Office of Professional Responsibility has launched an investigation.