General News of Friday, 28 April 2017

Source: kasapafmonline.com

We had no report of cocaine shipment – CEPS Tema Port Commander

Mr. Nyadzi,Tema Port Commander Mr. Nyadzi,Tema Port Commander

The Sector Commander of Customs Excise and Preventive Service (CEPS), of the Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA), at the Tema Port Confidence Nyadzi, has insisted that his outfit is not aware of the alleged disappearance of 500kg of cocaine worth about USD 30 million from the Tema Port.

“Infact it wasn’t reported to customs that any drug has been imported,” he told Kasapa 102.5 FM Friday.

Nonetheless, he said there have been a thorough investigation conducted by the Bureau of National Investigations(BNI), Narcotics Control Board(NACOB), the Ministry of Interior and other institutions on the matter.

He said the investigation carried out by the Customs was not informed by the report churned out by the Finder newspaper.

“We are not acting on this report you’re  talking about. We are at the Port and anything that happens and it is brought to our attention we are interested in it.”

This is contrary to the Finder’s newspaper report suggesting that  10 bags of suspected cocaine, each weighing 50kg (500kg in all) hidden in a consignment of rice with an estimated street value of about $30million, have vanished from the Tema Port under mysterious circumstances.

The said container, according to reports was detained in December last year, however, the suspected cocaine vanished before February 23, 2017, when all stakeholders conducted compulsory tests on the container.

It is learnt that K9 Dogs which are specially trained to detect cocaine confirmed traces of cocaine in the said container while UK’s Operation Westbridge also conducted sampling by the use of itemisers which also confirmed trace of cocaine.

But Mr. Nyadzi insists the report cannot be true because there was no suspected cocaine shipment in custody of officials at the Port.