KINGSTON, Jamaica — Five individuals arrested in connection with a $12-billion cocaine bust in Havendale, St Andrew, have now been formally charged.

The announcement was made by the Head of the Jamaica Constabulary Force’s (JCF) Crime and Security Portfolio, Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCP) Fitz Bailey, in a statement on Monday.

Charged with possession of cocaine, dealing in cocaine, and trafficking in cocaine are 57-year-old Clive Roy Davis, 58-year-old Collin Ricketts, 51-year-old George Sterling, 42-year-old Clayton Peart, and 72-year-old Junior Haldane.

All five were interviewed in the presence of their lawyers and will remain in police custody. Their court dates are still being finalised.

The August 6 drug bust ranks as one of the biggest cocaine seizures in Jamaica’s history.

READ: $12-billion cocaine bust shocks Havendale residents

DCP Bailey said the JCF will continue to work with their international and regional law enforcement partners as they actively pursue other leads “to further dismantle other criminal networks.”

Bailey also reported that since the start of the year, the Firearms and Narcotics Investigation Division has seized 86 illegal firearms, 1,154 rounds of ammunition, 20,074 kilograms of ganja, and approximately 67 kilograms of cocaine with an estimated street value of just over $2 million. This figure does not include the most recent bust.