MYANMAR security forces have dismantled a major cross-regional narcotics trafficking network, confiscating 24.15 million methamphetamine tablets with an estimated street value exceeding K36.225 billion. The coordinated operation spanned multiple townships across Magway Regions, Mandalay Region, and Yangon, resulting in numerous arrests and the impoundment of several transport vehicles.
The crackdown began on 12 August along the Thayet–Minhla roadway in Magway Region, where law enforcement officers intercepted two commercial trucks carrying an initial batch of 9.75 million pills. Follow-up investigations immediately led anti-drug units to Mandalay on 13 August, where key coordinators were apprehended in Mahaaungmye, Pyigyidagun, and Chanmyathazi townships, alongside an additional arrest at the Bantbway toll gate in Nawnghkio. A search of two residential compounds in Pyigyidagun Township uncovered another 14.4 million pills concealed across four vehicles. Subsequent operations on 14 and 15 August secured the arrests of regional distributors along the Yangon–Mandalay Expressway and in Mingala Taungnyunt Township.
According to police findings, the syndicate sourced the narcotics from Wanhai in southern Shan State, intending to move the shipments through Mandalay and Mindon before delivering them to recipients in Rakhine State. In addition to prosecuting the detained suspects and tracking down remaining accomplices under the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Law, authorities confirmed that Anti-Money Laundering legislation will be applied to trace financial flows and confiscate all associated assets and proceeds as state property. — MNA/ST
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