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by pltm
(PLTM) - The Royal Virgin Islands Police Force (RVIPF) has discovered close to twenty new marijuana fields across Tortola and Virgin Gorda, thanks to the aerial assets of the Royal Fleet Auxiliary (RFA) Mounts Bay.
The ship docked in the Territory last Friday, July 21, and is assisting the local forces in many regards, especially pertaining to disaster preparedness and crime fighting.
Oliver Bundock, the lone Flight Pilot on the ship, disclosed that officers of the RVIPF joined the ship’s helicopter team in the skies yesterday morning, July 24.
The joint venture, he noted, was to raise awareness of their presence to criminals and other persons in the Territory, as well as to scavenge local lands to locate unnoted marijuana fields.
As a result, about fifteen plots were located on Tortola, in addition to about four plots identified on Virgin Gorda.
“That was effectively in an hour and a half flight time. It makes a big difference to the local police force. We identified plots they didn’t know about,” Bundock stated.
He added, “We flew around and used our cameras to locate and identify different areas. The areas spotted were not huge fields, but marijuana fields nonetheless.”
Meanwhile, Bundock also shared that their presence would also result in some personal training sessions being conducted with the local force, in relation to marine skills and fighting against drug trafficking.
He stated that their presence will be a huge contribution to the fight against narcotics at sea, adding that they have begun their surveillance of the surrounding waters.
“The helicopter has great searching capabilities, so with our radar, we can see out about 200 miles, depending on our height. We've got a really good aerial sweep as well, with our camera.”
Once in the air, Bundock is joined by two marines and snipers, in the event that any criminal is spotted.
“Once a target is found through intelligent sources or by searching, we go in and try to stop the vessel, after having enough proof that they are actually involved in illegal activity. Once we identify them, we try to stop the boats. We do shots across the front of the boat with our guns to let them know we are here, and our last case scenario is to shoot out their engines.”
The ship is scheduled to leave the Territory later today, but will be in the region for the next three years.
The ship is currently making courtesy visits to each British Overseas Territory.
