Illegal Orealla airstrip blown up -drug trafficking suspected

http://www.stabroeknews.com/index.pl/article?id=56519760
Stabroek News
Monday, May 7th 2007
Members of the Joint Services over the weekend destroyed an illegal airstrip in the Amerindian village of Orealla, Corentyne which was thought to have been used for drug trafficking.
The destruction of the airstrip by explosives was completed on Saturday and the Guyana Defence Force yesterday took some members of the media to see the destroyed airstrip.
According to Public Relations Officer of the GDF, Captain Earle Edgill, the location of the airstrip was made known to the lawmen by residents in the area. The lawmen found some 500-plus gallons of aviation fuel at the location and pots and spoons were also discovered suggesting that there may have been some occupation of the area recently.
He said the airstrip was being used for illegal purposes and did not rule out the possibility that more such airstrips may be present in the area.
Stabroek News was told yesterday by a concerned resident that a number of illegal airstrips are in areas such as Springlands and Orealla. The residents was upset at the length of time the lawmen took to act since according to him for sometime now the information was not only passed to police in 'B' Division but reports were also made to the police in Georgetown. The man said that he is extremely concerned because the area is being used as a major transshipment point for cocaine and he could not understand why the authorities would not act promptly. "They waiting till dem people close up shop and then dem going just to clean up," the man said. He said reports of this particular airstrip were made to the police since last year. He reported that since the airstrip at Springlands Old Road was destroyed operations shifted to Orealla.
He said residents are aware of what is happening adding that some are even involved in the illegal acts. According to the man aircraft would land in the area from time to time and so it was no big secret.
The police have seen no success in the investigation of illegal airstrips not even when an aircraft was found as in the case of a single-engine Cessna aircraft that was discovered abandoned at Kwapau airstrip, Middle Mazaruni in March 2005.
The police seem to have closed off their investigation even though the owner of the plane was identified as a Venezuelan.
The man according to reports acknowledged that the plane was his, but he said that he did not know about its flight to Guyana. He however has not approached local authorities to date to repossess the plane.
At present the aircraft is under the control of the Guyana Defence Force (GDF) and is parked at the Army's hangar at Timehri.
Asked about the aircraft recently a senior GDF officer told Stabroek News that it was not in use and the army would not use it until permission was given by the government.
The officer had said that the aircraft has not taken off since it was flown from the interior to Timehri in 2005.