Kenyan police have seized 454 kilogrammes of methamphetamine, estimated to be worth $27 million, in an operation targeting international drug trafficking networks.
Three suspects, comprising two Tanzanians and a Ugandan, were arrested along Kenya’s coast following an intelligence-led operation involving Kenyan anti-narcotics officers and their Tanzanian counterparts.
Police said investigations began after a key suspect was arrested in Tanzania last week and handed over to Kenyan authorities at the border.
The suspect, who was allegedly linked to a separate seizure of 299 kilogrammes of suspected methamphetamine and heroin in Tanzania, reportedly led officers to a location in Msambweni on the Kenyan coast, where the latest consignment was discovered.
Further arrests were made at the location, while two vehicles and a motorcycle were also seized.
Aretas Lyimo, head of Tanzania’s Drug Control and Enforcement Authority (DCEA), said preliminary interrogations suggested that the drugs seized in Tanzania had entered the country through Kenya’s port of Mombasa.
He added that investigations pointed to the involvement of individuals believed to be key figures in an international drug trafficking network operating across several countries, including Afghanistan, South Africa, Mozambique, Zambia, Malawi, Uganda, Kenya, Tanzania and the United Arab Emirates.
According to Lyimo, a total of seven suspects were arrested in the two operations, comprising five Tanzanians and two Ugandans.
The suspects arrested in Kenya remain in custody and are expected to be arraigned in court, while the seized narcotics and other items have been retained as evidence.
Police say investigations are ongoing and have appealed to the public to provide information that could help combat drug trafficking.
The latest seizure comes amid growing concerns over drug abuse and illicit alcohol in Kenya. Last month, Deputy President Kithure Kindiki identified the menace as one of the country’s major threats and warned that the government would introduce tougher laws and intensify nationwide operations.
In a separate operation last month, Kenyan authorities destroyed more than one tonne of methamphetamine intercepted by the navy the previous year, approximately 630 kilometres off the coast of Mombasa.
Meanwhile, the Institute for Security Studies has warned of a shift in East Africa’s role in international drug trafficking, noting that the region’s coastline is increasingly serving not only as a transit route for drugs destined for other markets but also as an entry point for manufactured drugs intended for local consumption.
