On December 10, the U.S. Embassy’s Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) Vetted Unit, in collaboration with the Trinidad and Tobago Police Service (TTPS) Special Investigative Unit (SIU), arrested two Trinidadian citizens, Daveanan Deonarine and Michael Samsondar. The arrests were made on provisional warrants related to charges in the Eastern District of Louisiana for conspiracy to import cocaine into the United States. These charges stem from a 2023 DEA investigation that resulted in the seizure of 168 kilograms of cocaine in Trinidad.
The operation on May 18, 2023, marked the largest on-land drug seizure by volume in Trinidad and Tobago's history, with an estimated value exceeding TT$234 million. Both suspects are currently being held pending extradition proceedings to the United States. The case also involved support from the Transnational Organized Crime Unit (TOCU).
U.S. Embassy Chargé d’Affaires Dr. Jenifer Neidhart de Ortiz stated: “The U.S. Embassy’s DEA personnel and TOCU have been working side by side for over two decades. The close working relationship they have fostered, the mutual trust, and their excellent law enforcement work show results in these arrests. Together the United States and Trinidad and Tobago are making the region safer and more secure for all of our citizens. I am proud of the work we do with our Trinbagonian counterparts day in and day out.”