Guyana insists vessel found with cocaine left the island without the drug

Guyana's Customs Anti-Narcotics Unit has broken its silence on the recent discovery of over 2,000 pounds of cocaine on the Guyana-registered vessel, 'Mathieu', in the Atlantic Ocean by Spanish authorities.

Agents of Spain's National Police and Tax Agency Customs Surveillance earlier this month seized the cocaine in the waters of the Atlantic Ocean near Cape Verde leading to the arrest of six crew members including four Guyanese nationals.

Two Albanians were also arrested.

CANU maintains that the vessel left Guyana without the illicit drugs and that it had been given the necessary clearance from the Maritime Administration.

It said the cocaine may have been loaded onto the vessel at sea.