A mere two months old, Operation Kingfish, the government’s latest crime-fighting initiative established to dismantle organised crime and the narcotics trade, has hauled in more than four dozen hardened criminals.

Up to last Thursday, Kingfish had made 51 arrests.

According to Sergeant Steve Brown of the police’s information arm, the Constabulary Communication Network, those detained under Kingfish were held for various crimes, including offences committed in the United Kingdom (UK), United States (US) and Canada – all of which are partners with Jamaica in the joint operation.

He declined to comment on the number of detainees facing extradition but said Kingfish is spreading its net even further to track down several persons who are wanted in the three partner countries, having committed various crimes there.

“We won’t get into the specifics but we have some people in custody and we are going after some more,” Brown told the Observer.

But the local detentions represent only a fraction of those held under the joint operation which also allows UK and US agents to detain persons caught in territorial waters.

The Caribbean and territorial waters have been the scene of major drug busts, the largest of which occurred last month when 6.8 metric tonnes of cocaine valued at $4 billion and headed for the US through Jamaica, was seized, and nine men – including seven Colombians – were taken into custody by US agents.

Up to last Thursday, Kingfish had netted:

. 12 metric tonnes of cocaine valued at $5 billion;

. $12 million worth of cured ganja (3,000 pounds);

. 25 guns;

. ammunition; and

. 15 high-end vehicles believed to have been stolen in the US and shipped to Jamaica.

According to a BBC news report posted online, the joint operation has cut the amount of illegal drugs smuggled into the Caribbean from Colombia by 80 per cent.

The report quoted Britain’s foreign officer Bill Rammell as saying that the operation was a success.

It is believed that as much as 20 per cent of the cocaine that ends up in Britan is transshipped through Jamaica, while 80 per cent originates in Colombia – a country notorious for its billion-dollar illegal drug trade.

Another of Kingfish’s biggest successes too has been the seizure of 50 go-fast boats believed to have been used in the illegal drug smuggling trade.

But the police believe many more units have “gone into hiding” as a result of the crackdown.

According to Sergeant Brown, most of the units were picked up in odd places – hidden in bushes, tucked away in the mangroves in Portland Cottage, or skillfully concealed in some backyards.

“We find them all over the place,” he told the Observer. “But when we do, people normally distance themselves from the units.”

According to Sergeant Brown, a boat is kept indefinitely if its ‘owner’ cannot provide proof of ownership for the unit. He said the majority of the confiscated sea crafts are not registered.

“If we do not get proper documents to prove, beyond the shadow of a doubt, that a unit belongs to a particular person, we will not release it,” he said.

“What we do know is that we have put a major dent in the pockets of some people.”

Head of Operation Kingfish Assistant Commissioner of Police Glenmore Hinds also said the joint effort is achieving its objective.

“We have and are winning,” he said, noting that it was difficult to measure the success of his operation.

“What we have achieved so far, in terms of our overall performance and public support, is very encouraging,” he noted.

– martina@jamaicaobserver.com