Police clamp down on drugs trafficking in Russia’s Far East

ITAR-TASS news agency, Moscow
23 Nov 04

Khabarovsk, 23 November: Over the last week, more than 170 people
were detained for crimes related to drug trafficking in the Far
East. Over 130 kg of marijuana, hashish, opium, heroin and other
drugs were seized. These are the main results of the second stage
of the Canal-2004 operation carried out from 15 to 22 November, the
Russian Federal Drug Control Service directorate for the Far Eastern
Federal District told ITAR-TASS today.

Directorate chiefs said that the operation had taken place
simultaneously in Russia, Armenia, Belarus, Kazakhstan and other member
countries of the Collective Security Treaty [which includes Russia,
Armenia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan]. Its main
aim was to cut the channels of drug and psychotropic substances’
trafficking.

Over 1,500 officers of the anti-drug service, the Interior Ministry,
the Federal Security Service and the Customs Office took part in the
operation in the Far Eastern Federal District. They made searches at
railway and bus stations, in the airports and on the roads. Nearly
400 drug-related and other crimes were uncovered.

In addition, the Interior Ministry Main Directorate for the Far Eastern
Federal District told ITAR-TASS today that a small bus stopped by the
police for examination had been detained in Neryungrinskiy District,
Yakutia, yesterday [22 November]. A total of 12.6 kg of hashish was
seized from the caches arranged in the bus. The batch of drugs would
cost over R1m [35,000 dollars] in the black market.

A Ukrainian national was engaged in the transportation of this large
batch of drugs. Criminal proceedings have been instituted. The drug
pusher is threatened with up to 10 years in jail.

The Interior Ministry directorate added that 8,837 drug-related
crimes had been cleared up in Far Eastern Federal District since the
beginning of 2004. Moreover, local police officers cleared up over
6,000 other crimes and cut short the activities of 468 organized
criminal groups. Over 6 t of drugs was confiscated.