More than 500 million kyats’ worth of heroin being transported from Mineyei in northern Shan State was seized at the Kachin State’s Nanttsiaung entrance gate on December 25.

A passenger vehicle driven from Mandalay towards Phakant along the Myitkyina-Shwebo-Mandalay road was inspected along with other vehicles, at the Nanttsiaung inspection gate by the Mohynin Anti-Narcotic Squad-3, and heroin put in soap dishes wrapped with quilts, was seized.

According to records, 20.9 kilos of heroin with a street value of 522 million and five hundred thousand kyats, put in 2,090 multicoloured soap dishes, wrapped with bed sheets and quilts and stuffed into 18 polystyrene bags were seized. They were to be transported to Linkhin village, Phakant region, from Mineyei, northern Shan State.

Police chief, San Htun, unit leader of Mohynin based Narcotic squad-3, said that more than acting on tipoff they had been instructed to inspect at the border inspection gates with reinforced man power. He further said that it had been the third time this year that drugs had been transported in this way, and that this had been the biggest haul. All drugs were carried from orthern Shan State to Phakant region where its use was the highest. Of the four criminals two were cousins, one living in Muse and the other in Hlaingthayar, Yangon. He said that others connected with this crime were being sought after.

Transporters of the drugs, 41-year-old Naing Oo (a) Maung Naing and 29-year-old Phyoe Aung (a) Ko Phyo, were booked under the Narcotics and Psychotropic Substances Act 19(ka)/20 at the Mohynin police station.

It is learnt that there were six routes through which narcotics were brought into Kachin State.  Of these routes heroin, raw opium and psychotropic substances were transported along Shan State via Kutkhai-Nankham-Bhamo-Winemaw-Myitkyina-Phakant route, an Lwegei-Bhamo-Winemaw-Myitkyina route. Narcotic substances coming from Shan State and Mandalay cut across Indaw, Sagaing Region, and go along Mohynin-Mogaung-Phakant route. Another route was to go Shweli, China from Muse and take the Shweli-Kanpaingte-Winemaw-Myitkyina-Phakant route. Most of the raw opium take the Upper Chindwin Homalin-Seizin-Tarmakhan-Phakant route, and Sadonne-Winemaw-Myitkyina-Phakant route. According to Kathe District Police Force records a new route, namely Wuntho-Kawlin-Pinlebu-Phaungpyin route was used to transport to jade, gold and amber mines.

It was learnt that the use of narcotic drugs remained still high in Phakant, Kachin State, jade mines, gold and precious stones mines at the tip of the Ayeyawady River, clandestine timber transporting route along the Myanmar-China border, and tissue banana groves.