Coke seekers storm Manchioneal

By Gareth Davis, Freelance Writer

PORT ANTONIO, Portland:

ONE HOUSE was burnt to the ground in Manchioneal and several people beaten between Wednesday night and early yesterday morning as several men converged on the town reportedly in search of cocaine taken ashore by fishermen on Tuesday.

Reports last night suggested that as much as 200 kilos of cocaine has gone missing.

One man, Mark Thompson, is nursing injuries at home after being abducted and beaten by unknown assailants demanding drugs. Other residents have also been forced by the drug seekers to abandon their homes.

Police from the Narcotics Division in Kingston, who arrived in the town on Wednesday, detectives from the Criminal Investigative Branch (CIB) from Port Antonio, along with the Manchioneal police, have since set up a 24-hour surveillance of the area to curtail the violence, and also to gather information regarding the whereabouts of the drugs.

According to information from the police, fishermen are reported to have found the drugs while withdrawing their nets from the sea, off the coast of Manchioneal on Tuesday night. When they reached the shore, news spread quickly about the cocaine find, and before long the area became populated with buyers and other dealers in search of the "white lady" as the drug is popularly called. By the time the police reached the area, the large crowd had already dispersed.

Senior Detective Sergeant of the CIB in Port Antonio, Derrick Hart, told The Gleaner yesterday that there were reports of cocaine being moved around in the town but that the police had not yet been able to make any arrests or seize any of the drugs.

"The severe beating of one resident and also the fact that large amounts of cash have been spotted among motorists by police personnel suggest that something big is taking place," said Mr. Hart.

Mr. Hart said that the police were not getting any co-operation from residents whom they believe are withholding valuable information.

Some residents, however, are saying that some of the policemen are to be blamed for the lack of co-operation. "There have been instances when information is handed out to the police, regarding person's involvement in illegal activities only to find out that there was a leak. And there is one occasion where my brother had to flee the area, unable to return after giving information to the police," one man said.

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