Foreign aircraft with cocaine lands at Mahdia

Jul 11, 2022 News

…Colombian, Brazilian held

The Cessna that landed illegally at Mahdia on Sunday

Kaieteur News -A team of investigators from the Guyana Police Force’s headquarters at Eve Leary, Georgetown on Sunday travelled to Mahdia, Region Eight after a Cessna aircraft loaded with cocaine illegally landed at the airstrip. The tail number (registration number) of the plane is N5470Z and according to investigators it landed around 14:20hrs.

Brazilian National, Mateus Vicinius Alberto

Kaieteur News was told that the pilot and co-pilot of the airplane were detained for questioning. Police identified the pilot as a Colombian national, Rodriguez Estiven while the other, Mateus Vinicius Alberto, is believed to be a law-enforcement officer of neighbouring Brazil, however police are yet to confirm if

Columbian National, Rodrigues Estiven

the claim is true. Inside the aircraft, investigators found 10 parcels of suspected cocaine and eight were labeled “king Cocoa 30”.

A parcel of cannabis was also part of the plane’s cargo along with one satellite phone, two GPS devices, and one radio set. Investigators have since flown back to Georgetown with the narcotics and the suspects. Some background checks suggest that it could be possible that the aircraft might be carrying an incorrect tail number. However, there is a registered 1972 model Cessna plane N5470 that might be linked to Brazil. In recent years, such planes have been using Guyana’s airspace to traffic cocaine. At least five airplanes have landed illegally in the hinterland locations from 2020 to present.

Two planes, a Cessna with three foreign nationals onboard and a beechcraft laden with kilos of cocaine and a body were found at Issano, Region Seven, in 2020. Another craft, a burnt out Cessna was found abandoned along a trail in Kwakwani in June 2021. A fourth plane, a beechcraft with more drugs and two Brazilian nationals onboard was forced to land at Orealla, Region Six in May 2021, because of mechanical issues. Some of the foreign nationals have already been prosecuted and jailed while others are still on trial.

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