Drug planes make the news almost weekly, and Belizeans say they feel these illicit flights are way too frequent. Of course, thee same can be said in Quintana Roo and the Peten. Yesterday the Commissioner of Police said it's because there's an excess of cocaine in Colombia. We asked him about the patterns of these planes which now seem to be heading to southern Belize.
Reporter:
"In terms of the entire issue with drug transshipment we know that it heated up again recently. We saw number of planes land in the South and we know that, we believe, that from Monkey river and Payne's Creek they were conveyed by boat. Are the drug cartels changing up the game on the police and continuing to make it impossible for them to make interdictions?"
Chester Williams, Commissioner of Police
"Yes, of course they are. And you know that those cartels are very resourceful and as I said before that from my visit to Colombia in 2018, I made two visits to Colombia officially, we were told in a briefing that there were a huge surplus of cocaine in Colombia that need to get out. And so, we're seeing now that the cartels are going at whatever end to get this cocaine out of Colombia. It so happens that we are their elected shipment part. And so, Belize is being used. You know, Blue Creek was their area of choice. And we had done something about Blue Creek and now they are no longer seen in Blue Creek. And we are seeing now that they become more innovative in their efforts to land these planes and get the drugs through."
"When I read social media, I can see that Belizeans are outraged about these plane landings. There is something that you can do if it is at your shootout where you're just about it. If you see a plane flying low, call the 922 number, give the information, they will pass it to us. If you see a plane landing, call 922, the information will come to us and we'll act. It is extremely difficult, Jules, that when these planes enter our airspace it dips below that 3000 feet limit. And so, the radar no longer detects the plane and so we do have to rely on people on the ground to tell us that they see a plane flying here, there or wherever."
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