Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB) personnel seized 90,000 yaba tablets worth Tk 2.7 crore. It arrested a man in two separate anti-smuggling operations in Ukhiya, Cox’s Bazar, on Friday night and early Saturday.
In the first operation, a special patrol team from the Hoaykong Border Outpost recovered 40,000 yaba tablets worth Tk 1.2 crore after a suspected smuggler fled, abandoning the consignment near Alamgir Chowdhury’s fish enclosure at around 6:35pm on October 30.
According to the Ukhiya Battalion (64 BGB), the patrol team spotted a person entering Bangladesh from Myanmar with a bundle. When challenged, he dropped it and fled towards a nearby village.
A search of the bundle led to the recovery of four cartons containing about 40,000 blue yaba tablets, packed in airtight packets and wrapped in khaki-colored material. A further search of the area found no other illegal goods.
In a separate operation early Saturday, BGB personnel seized another 50,000 yaba tablets worth Tk 1.5 crore and arrested a man in the Farirbil area of Ukhiya.
The arrested man was identified as Md Hasmatullah, 40, son of Md Abul Bashar and a resident of Block A, Camp 12, in the Rohingya camps in Ukhiya.
Lieutenant Colonel Mohammad Zahirul Islam, commanding officer of the Ukhiya Battalion, said a special patrol team from the Palongkhali Border Outpost, acting on intelligence, spotted a man entering Bangladesh from Myanmar with a bundle at around 12:10am on October 31.
The team challenged him near the eastern side of Mizan’s fish enclosure, along an embankment in the Farirbil area. He tried to flee but was chased and arrested by BGB personnel.
A search of the bundle recovered five cartons containing 50,000 blue yaba tablets wrapped in khaki-colored packets.
During preliminary questioning, Hasmatullah admitted that he had bought the tablets from the Myanmar border area and was carrying them for resale at a higher price, the BGB said.
The commanding officer said intelligence surveillance had been strengthened to identify and arrest those involved in drug smuggling.
He said BGB would continue its operations to prevent drug trafficking and cross-border smuggling.
The Ukhiya Battalion operates under the Ramu Sector of the Cox’s Bazar Region of BGB.
Cox’s Bazar Life Report
