Police seized 79.4 grams of ganja and over $270,000 in cash from the premises of two businessmen, both of whom reside at Trainline, Port Kaituma, North West District. In a press release police said acting on intelligence, a team of ranks went to the residence and business premises of the two men: Lancelot Glen, 40 and George Whittaker Hope, 31. Upon the ranks’ arrival at the premises, Hope was seen shirtless, sitting outside. On seeing the ranks he reportedly hurriedly ran inside, locked the entrance door and turned off the lights, raising the officers’ suspicions.

The team called out to Hope, who initially failed to respond. After several minutes of knocking on the wooden door, it was opened, and Hope presented himself. The ranks informed him of their presence and the reason for their visit, which was to conduct a search for narcotics, illegal arms, and ammunition. According to the police, Hope consented to the search, allowing the officers to enter through the main entrance. When asked if he was alone, he replied that Lancelot who also lived there was not present. During the search, the team discovered a bulky black plastic bag on a table inside the building.

The bag was opened in Hope’s presence, revealing several small transparent ziplock bags, each containing a quantity of leaves, seeds, and stems suspected to be cannabis, police said in their press release.  The suspect was then informed of the offence, and when cautioned responded by saying: “That’s all I have, officer.” He was then arrested. Additionally, a quantity of cash in various denominations (20’s, 50’s, 100’s, 500’s, 1000’s, and 5000’s) was found in different areas of the building. When counted in Hope’s presence, the cash totalled $270,320. The cash was seized as it was suspected to be proceeds from narcotics sales.

Hope was subsequently escorted to the Port Kaituma Police Station along with the cash and suspected narcotics. A total of 113 small transparent ziplock bags with the suspected narcotics were weighed in Hope’s presence and amounted to 79.4 grams. The narcotics and cash were marked, sealed, and stored as evidence. Hope was then placed into custody. Subsequently, contact was made with Glen, the other occupant of the building. Glen was shown the suspected narcotics, informed of the offence, and cautioned. He replied, “I live there, but I don’t know anything about any drugs.” He was also arrested and placed into custody.

Investigations are ongoing. (Kaieteur News)

Photo: The two businesssmen and some of the Marijuana that was seized. (News Room Guyana)