By NALINEE SEELAL Wednesday, June 2 2010

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Acting Commissioner of Police James Philbert...

HIGH-POWERED assault rifles and shotguns, which have since been traced to nearby Venezuela have been seized by police during a raid at a house in Diego Martin which led to the arrest of four persons including a woman and a 17-year-old boy.

And while television news reports said that the raid was one in which police believe they foiled a threat to national security, Acting Police Commissioner James Philbert, said last night that while the weapons seized were high-powered, he believes the criminals involved were dealing in the illicit drug trade.

According to a police report, officers received crucial information from members of the public and at about 5.30 am yesterday, a team of heavily armed officers surrounded a house in Diego Martin and carried out the raid. The officers arrested three men including a 17-year-old and a 22-year-old woman. They seized over $100,000 in compressed marijuana and seized a cache of arms and ammunition including assault rifles, a shotgun and over 300 rounds of ammunition of varying calibre.

Police said the house belongs to a known drug dealer who has been under surveillance for several months.

“We are alarmed because of the type and calibre of weapons found and are grateful that it is now in the hands of the police rather than out on the streets. We want to thank the public for working with the police in ensuring that this bust was a success and I urge other members of the public to assist us in fighting crime,” Acting Police Commissioner Philbert said.

Saying he did not know whether the weapons were being used to protect drug turf or were rented out, Philbert said that they have since been traced to Venezuela. As such, local police are now liaising with their counterparts in Venezuela to see if arrests in that country could be made.

Police believe that the raided house was used as the base for local operations in a Trinidad-Venezuela drug connection in which illicit narcotics from the South American mainland were smuggled into this country for local use and also for foreign export.