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The Bangladesh Coast Guard has seized 410,000 yaba tablets and 21.5 kg of heroin worth an estimated Tk 42 crore from waters off St Martin’s Island, officials said Thursday.
The suspected drug traffickers fled toward Myanmar after dumping three sacks containing the narcotics into the sea upon noticing the Coast Guard patrol, according to the force.
Coast Guard Station St Martin’s conducted the special operation around 6am near the Bangladesh-Myanmar international maritime boundary, within Bangladeshi territorial waters.
Acting on a tip-off, Coast Guard personnel signalled a suspicious engine-powered wooden boat to stop. The people aboard reportedly fled toward Myanmar waters after spotting the patrol, throwing three sacks into the sea.
The Coast Guard later recovered the sacks and found 410,000 yaba tablets and 21.5 kg of heroin inside them. The seized drugs were estimated to have a market value of around Tk 42 crore, said Lieutenant Commander Sabbir Alam Sujon, media officer of the Coast Guard.
No arrests were made as the suspected traffickers managed to escape.
The Coast Guard said such operations would continue to strengthen security around St Martin’s Island and curb drug trafficking in the area. Legal proceedings concerning the seized narcotics are underway.