RANGOON — Security forces captured a huge shipment of illegal drugs on Saturday in Padaung Township, Pegu Division, according to multiple government sources.
The authorities seized a shipment of 14 million amphetamine tablets that were packed inside a light truck that had stopped in Padaung Township, the Ministry of Defense announced via Facebook.
The amphetamine tablets were stored inside one fuel tank that was hidden among 15 fuel tanks in the back of the light truck. The vehicle’s driver was transporting the drugs to Taungup Township in Arakan State, the ministry said.
“There is an ongoing investigation,” Pegu Division Chief Minister Win Thein told The Irrawaddy.
But the minister added that he could not provide any additional details about how the authorities seized the shipment of drugs. He referred further questions to the Padaung Township police station.
On Sunday, police in Mingaladon Township, Rangoon Division seized a separate shipment of 2.4 million amphetamine tablets, the Rangoon police force reported.
Authorities have not yet issued a statement regarding the sources of the illegal drugs or how they were discovered.
Burma is the world’s second largest producer of illegal opium, after Afghanistan, according to the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime.
