WAITING IN THE WINGS
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¶14. (C) Khan was the brashiest of Guyana's narco-criminals,
but he was by no means the only one. Others will certainly
try to fill the void left by Khan's departure from the local
scene. Two leading candidates are Bramhanand (Alt: Bramhand,
Brammanand) Nandalall and Clayton Hutson (DOB:31-Dec-64).
Older than the upstart Khan, they have been active in drug
trafficking for many years. Nandalall is the "godfather" of
organized crime in Guyana. Khan and Hutson both worked for
him before setting them up their own criminal organizations.
¶15. (C) Ambassador met with Home Affairs Teixeira June 23 to
discuss Khan and other matters. Teixeira was eager to share
her views on the risk and instability that Khan's capture
causes in Guyana. She guesses Hutson might become the next
kingpin. She said that Nandalall is keeping very quiet and
is rumored to be cooperating with the U.S.
¶16. (C) Teixeira warned that Khan's departure from the scene
opens the door for the criminal situation to become more
political -- she said it will no longer be about "just
narcotics, but about ethnicity" as well. She fears that if
Hutson uses this opportunity to assume a larger role, then he
and his accomplices will pose a serious political threat with
the help of drug and gun trafficking.
¶17. (C) COMMENT. GoG leaders were comfortable with Khan
because they thought he was on their side; the possibility of
a new kingpin allied with the political opposition makes them
very nervous indeed. Other sources indicate that Nandalall
is more likely than Hutson to take over as Guyana's number
one narco-criminal. Judging from Teixeira's tone, Hutson
leans politically towards the PNC/R. Nandalall's political
stance is uncertain, but it is telling that the PPP
government has never gone after him during his many years of
criminal activity. END COMMENT.
BULLEN