Thursday, 16 August 2012 13:35 Mizzima News
A large methamphetamine drug factory on the Sino-Burma border was busted by a joint Chinese and Burmese operation, seizing a large haul of drugs and capturing 11 suspects on Wednesday.
More than 347 kilograms of amphetamines, or ice, and 120 kg of tramadol, a narcotic pain reliever, were seized in the operation, authorities said.
Sources with the Chinese Ministry of Public Security said police from southwest China's Yunnan Province and their Burmese counterparts busted the plant in Laogai based on an informant’s information.
After a two-month investigation, Chinese and Myanmar police captured the suspects in Laogai in a raid on the drug plant on July 9. A Chinese national living in China was also arrested in connection with the raid.
Laogai is the capital of Kokang (also known as Special Region 1) in the northern part of Shan State. It is situated on the Salween River, which forms Burma's border with the People's Republic of China, and is about 10 miles from Nansan, China. The Chinese language is widely used and the renminbi is in wide circulation.
According to the Chinese ministry, police on the Chinese mainland have cracked 11 drug-related cases in cooperation with Burmese authorities, in addition to police in Vietnam, the Philippines, Hong Kong and Taiwan since the beginning of 2012.
On Wednesday, Mizzima reported that Burmese authorities warned that the country's amphetamine problem is “very dangerous” now, after seizing more than 1.4 million amphetamine pills and 116 kilos of heroin in July.
“It's getting worse,” an official told Agency France Press recently. “Although the country has vowed to be drug free by 2014, it can only be opium free because of the problem of stimulant tablets.”
Official media on Wednesday reported 342 drug-related cases across the country in July, resulting in 473 suspects arrested.
Most of the stimulant tablets were seized in the eastern border areas, but the drugs are making their way to Rangoon, officials said.
Amphetamine production and poppy cultivation are one source of revenue for some armed rebel groups, say government officials.
A large methamphetamine drug factory on the Sino-Burma border was busted by a joint Chinese and Burmese operation, seizing a large haul of drugs and capturing 11 suspects on Wednesday.
 |
| Location of Laogai within Burma (Myanmar) Photo: Wikipedia |
More than 347 kilograms of amphetamines, or ice, and 120 kg of tramadol, a narcotic pain reliever, were seized in the operation, authorities said.
Sources with the Chinese Ministry of Public Security said police from southwest China's Yunnan Province and their Burmese counterparts busted the plant in Laogai based on an informant’s information.
After a two-month investigation, Chinese and Myanmar police captured the suspects in Laogai in a raid on the drug plant on July 9. A Chinese national living in China was also arrested in connection with the raid.
Laogai is the capital of Kokang (also known as Special Region 1) in the northern part of Shan State. It is situated on the Salween River, which forms Burma's border with the People's Republic of China, and is about 10 miles from Nansan, China. The Chinese language is widely used and the renminbi is in wide circulation.
According to the Chinese ministry, police on the Chinese mainland have cracked 11 drug-related cases in cooperation with Burmese authorities, in addition to police in Vietnam, the Philippines, Hong Kong and Taiwan since the beginning of 2012.
On Wednesday, Mizzima reported that Burmese authorities warned that the country's amphetamine problem is “very dangerous” now, after seizing more than 1.4 million amphetamine pills and 116 kilos of heroin in July.
“It's getting worse,” an official told Agency France Press recently. “Although the country has vowed to be drug free by 2014, it can only be opium free because of the problem of stimulant tablets.”
Official media on Wednesday reported 342 drug-related cases across the country in July, resulting in 473 suspects arrested.
Most of the stimulant tablets were seized in the eastern border areas, but the drugs are making their way to Rangoon, officials said.
Amphetamine production and poppy cultivation are one source of revenue for some armed rebel groups, say government officials.
Subscribe to email feed
