408 kg of chemicals used in heroin production seized at Turkish border

EDİRNE

Turkish police have seized 408 kilograms of chemicals used in the manufacture of heroin hidden in a truck at the Kapıkule border crossing in the northwestern province of Edirne, state-run Anadolu Agency reported on Oct. 27.

The truck, loaded with clover bale, was reported to have passed through Bulgaria, and then stopped by officials at the Turkish border for an X-ray scanning.

After their inspections, the police discovered 18 bins hidden within the clover bales. Following an analysis, the chemical inside the bins were determined to be acetic anhydride used in heroin making.

The authorities have reportedly said that a total of 200 kilograms of heroin can be produced with this amount of acetic anhydride.

The driver of the truck, said to have embarked on the road from Romania, has been detained.

The incident came one day after Turkish narcotics police teams seized many drugs in simultaneously conducted raids in Istanbul, the northwestern province of Kırklareli, and Edirne.

Among the confiscated drugs were 56 kilograms of heroin, 120 kilograms of skunk, 5 kilograms of opium gum, 600 grams of cocaine, and a record amount of 2.55 million ecstasy pills – indicated to be the highest number of ecstasy pills seized in just a single operation by Turkish police.

Five suspects were detained following the operations, Doğan News Agency reported on Oct. 26.

The raids were conducted following a tip-off Istanbul police received that a high amount of drug pills coming from Balkan countries would be distributed throughout the country, and heroin coming from Asian countries would be sent to Europe through Turkey.