Unauthorized vehicle uplifted $181.5M in fuel for GDF in 2019 – Audit report

Guyana Police Force (GPF) detectives along with the members of the Intelligence Department of the Guyana Defence Force (GDF) have launched an investigation into a suspected fuel racket at the GDF.

During 2019, the Guyana Defence Force reported severe shortcomings with respect to the purchase, reconciliation and storage of fuel.

But a report by Auditor General Deodat Sharma has found that some 887,800 litres of fuel, valued at $181.5M, were uplifted by an unauthorized vehicle during 2019.

This included 26 instances where 2,000 gallons of gasoline were uplifted for the Coast Guard Headquarters, Ruimveldt even though the storage capacity at the location was only 1,000 gallons.

Back in September 2020, Minister within the Ministry of Public Works, Deodat Indar had said that allegations of unusual activity between staff of the Guyana Oil Company (GuyOil) and GDF ranks over fuel had led to a police investigation.

At the time, he said the investigation was being conducted into a $300M fraud that was discovered by the GDF around fuel supply.

In a statement on August 26, GuyOil said the company suffered no loss from the alleged fraudulent activity involving its staff and the GDF.

The statement from GuyOil followed what was purported to be an exchange between a GuyOil executive and a former government official which appeared to point to illegal transactions.

GuyOil’s statement on August 26 refuted this purported exchange.

The company had said then that internal investigations found the allegations to be “substantive” enough to warrant the involvement of the police and the Criminal Investigation Department.