Over 2,600 pounds of ganja seized offshore St Thomas, men arrested

Over 2,600 pounds of ganja with an estimated street value of $26.2 million were seized offshore St Thomas on Saturday by the Jamaica Defence Force (JDF) Coast Guard.

Two Jamaican men who were aboard the vessel on which the drugs were found were accosted and later handed over to Narcotics police.

The JDF said this is a major dent against the drug-for-guns trade between Jamaica and Haiti.

In a media release today, the army explained that the vessel was initially spotted approximately 18 NM southwest of Bowden Bay, St Thomas, and a team was deployed.

According to the JDF, the area is within a known vector utilised for illicit trafficking between Jamaica and Haiti.

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It said the operational team intercepted the vessel, boarded it, and discovered 2,629 pounds of compressed ganja packaged in knitted bags and buckets.

Noting the drug-for-guns trade between Jamaica and Haiti continues to be one of the main sources of illicit firearms for gangs in the island, the JDF asserted this recovery has prevented the possibility of a significant number of illegal weapons returning to the country's shores.

It said the security forces will continue to be relentless in their conduct of counter-illicit trafficking.