Latvian man arrested after raid on sailboat
Police and customs seized a large haul of narcotics from a sailboat in a raid in St George's yesterday.A 28-year-old Latvian man was arrested after officers swooped on the boat at McCallan's Wharf, near Tiger Bay, at around 2pm.About five hours later, officers were seen carrying ten trash bags from the vessel, although police would not reveal the nature or volume of the narcotics involved, or where the boat was from.A handful of officers and a police sniffer dog were at the scene for much of the afternoon, in the latest in a string of seizures across the Island.Police spokesman Dwayne Caines told the media: “Police and customs were called to McCallan's Wharf in St George's and as a result a 28-year-old Latvian man was taken into police custody.“The sailboat had a substantial amount of narcotics on it and an investigation has commenced.”Other police raids in recent weeks include one at a home in Warwick last month, in which officers found more than $10 million worth of cannabis, heroin, cocaine and hash and boxes containing 200 rounds of live ammunition.Officers have seized a large number of cannabis trees in two separate raids in St David's, while 115 cannabis plants were taken from a property in Boaz Island last month.Six men have appeared in court in connection with the hauls. Last night, Bermudians Against Narcotics spokesman Takbir Sharrieff said police now appear to be making more progress in the fight against drugs. “The police are getting overwhelming results because people are talking now,” Mr Sharrieff told The Royal Gazette.“Whether it's wives or girlfriends, all the people have been turning a blind eye before, but now they are seeing the light. I'm very happy that the public are coming forward now and reporting it.“There's been a lot of drugs, especially marijuana, in Bermuda. I'm surprised at the amount of marijuana being found in Bermuda. I'm ecstatic it's being pulled out of the ground. It should all be burned.”Useful website: www.police.bm