Customs
Customs officer suspended following arrest
(CNS): A long-serving female customs officer was arrested on suspicion of evading customs duty following a customs operation on 5 April, according to a release issued by Collector of Customs Charles Clifford this week. The officer, who is believed to have been with the department for many years, has now been placed on required leave. The investigation […]
Immigration to split into new agencies
(CNS): As government begins work on shaping a new border protection force, which will see the customs and immigration enforcement arms merge and the creation of a new human resources unit, the immigration department as it is now will no longer exist. Speaking in the Legislative Assembly last month, the premier described the immigration department […]
Customs and immigration merger to shape new border force
(CNS): The Cayman Islands Government is moving ahead with the plans for a national border force, merging the enforcement elements of immigration and customs. Premier Alden McLaughlin said that when it is complete, the country will have a single border force agency with staff trained to better protect the sea and airports and to focus […]
Cops ‘stoned’ during drug bust
(CNS): Police were pelted with stones in West Bay yesterday and one officer was struck twice in the head and face during a drug operation carried out at a home in the Boatswain Bay area. Police, customs and agriculture officers raided a property where ganja was being cultivated. Several ganja plants were recovered but no arrests […]
Customs officer to face trial for drug smuggling
(CNS): David Lobo (32), from Bodden Town, has pleaded not guilty to charges relating to a drug smuggling conspiracy in which around 1.8kg of cocaine were smuggled into Cayman using Colombian artefacts. Lobo, who is currently suspended from his job as a customs officer on paid required leave, has denied being involved in the drug […]
CIG signs deal to set up fast track in Miami
(CNS): Deputy Governor Franz Manderson and US Customs and Border Protection (CBP) Executive Assistant Director Todd Owen signed a deal at the government building in George Town yesterday to establish a customs and immigration fast track system at Miami airport for US visitors coming to Cayman. The aim is to enable air passengers to clear the […]
US citizen caught with loaded gun at airport
(CNS): Customs officers have charged a 62-year-old US citizen with possession of an unlicensed firearm after he was caught at the airport with a loaded gun at the weekend. The visitor was reportedly leaving the Cayman Islands when customs officials at Owen Roberts International Airport on Grand Cayman discovered the loaded weapon. No details of […]
2lbs cocaine seized at ORIA, local man arrested
(CNS): A 30-year-old Caymanian man from Bodden Town was arrested at Owen Roberts International Airport yesterday morning, after he was found to have almost 2lbs of cocaine. He was arrested following his arrival on a domestic flight from Cayman Brac. Collector of Customs Charles Clifford said the haul of illegal drugs and the arrest were as a result […]
Customs and immigration focus on targeted intel
(CNS): A group of leaders from the Cayman Islands immigration and customs departments recently returned from a CARICOM meeting in Trinidad about the strategic and risk management approaches to border security. Both departments are tasked with tackling risks and threats related to the movement of potential terrorists, drug traffickers, deportees, prohibited immigrants, as well as drugs, […]
Passenger fined over import of illegal caviar
(CNS): Government officials from the Department of Environment and customs are urging people to ensure that they have the relevant permits to import caviar after a passenger who was stopped at Owen Roberts International Airport was fined for failing to declare the product, and the lack of a CITES permit or the necessary local licences. […]
Customs officer charged in cocaine conspiracy
(CNS): David Lobo (32), who works as a customs officer, was remanded in custody Monday after appearing in court facing cocaine charges. The Bodden Town man was arrested in June in relation to a drug conspiracy alongside two Venezuelan nationals and a Colombian but he was not charged until today. Lobo appeared before Magistrate Valdis […]
