T&T politicians linked with British cocaine millionaire

Trinidad Express

A number of politicians from Trinidad are said to have had a close alliance with a British millionaire drug pusher, who is now in hiding from British authorities.

The politicians, according to reports from Britain, are members of the People’s National Movement from 1991 to 1995 and present day, as well as members of the United National Congress government from 1995 to 2000.

There is also speculation that British Customs have evidence which may lead to the extradition of some of them in connection with exporting illicit drugs to Britain.

In addition, a number of places in Chaguaramas are said to be responsible for the outfitting and loading of cocaine on vessels for overseas delivery.

The charges come in the wake of the conclusion of a series of trials, following five years of investigation, which have led to imprisonment of 15 people all of whom were members of what is believed to have been the most successful cocaine smuggling gang ever to have operated out of Britain.

“They moved cocaine from Latin America through the West Indies to small seaports in Southern England,” it is reported.

A publicity ban which had been imposed on the trials was recently lifted and details are now surfacing according to Mirror.co.uk newspaper.

The gang, it was said, began coming apart at the seams in 1996 when a converted trawler named the Sea Mist was interdicted in Ireland and 599 kilos of cocaine was discovered by Irish customs. The captain of that vessel John Ewart who was subsequently sentenced to 17 years imprisonment for illicit drug trafficking reportedly told the international press that the Sea Mist was outfitted and loaded in Chaguaramas.

In conjunction with the Sea Mist a series of yachts left their Chaguaramas anchorages laden with cocaine and even heroin for England and ports of Europe investigators believe.

Two other vessels were also given similar treatment at Chaguaramas. They are the yacht The Aquarius with 226.6 kilos of cocaine for delivery to Antigua in 1994 and The Obsession, with over 200 kilos of cocaine destined for Britain in 1996. This was a follow up run to the Sea Mist. The Obsession was intercepted off Anguilla in 1996.

The smuggling runs, it was said, were the direct result of the presence of British millionaire Brian Brendan Wright and his son Brian Wright Jr in Trinidad.

“Whilst Brian Wright Sr was responsible for the direct negotiations which created the illicit drug trafficking alliance, Brian Wright Jr moved regularly in and out of Trinidad.”

Wright Jr was recently jailed for 16 years while his father is believed to be in hiding in Cyprus.

The pair, it was said, moved among politicians and government officials.

The Express has also been informed that yachties were recruited to ship the cargoes to England and “agencies of the state of Trinidad either turned a blind eye to their operations in Chaguaramas or were in denial.”

Another of those convicted whose name has come up as being a regular visitor to the Caribbean and is believed to have organised the shipments is Ian Kiernan, who was sentenced to 20 years imprisonment.

Between 1996 and 1998, cocaine with an estimated street value of $3 billion was smuggled into England by Brian Brendan Wright operations, investigators believe.

Last night National Security Minister Howard Chin Lee said he had no knowledge of anything pertaining to this matter and that he had not been contacted by any British official about it.