Customs foil drug smuggling attempt worth Rs114 million at Karachi Airport

KARACHI: Pakistan Customs officials at Jinnah International Airport, Karachi, foiled two separate attempts to smuggle drugs worth Rs114 million through the International Mail Office, the department said in a press release on Tuesday.

According to Customs, the first seizure involved 1.69 kilograms of marijuana concealed in a parcel declared as containing “amulets.” The shipment had arrived from Thailand and was valued at approximately Rs52 million.

In the second case, officials recovered 1,945 MDMA (ecstasy) pills hidden inside a parcel declared as a vacuum cleaner. The package originated from Belgium and had an estimated street value of Rs62 million.

Customs officials said the growing volume of international mail and e-commerce shipments has increased the risk of smugglers attempting to exploit postal and courier services for drug trafficking.

They added that the successful interceptions reflect the continued vigilance and effective performance of Pakistan Customs officers, who remain committed to preventing the inflow of narcotics and safeguarding communities from illicit substances.

“Pakistan Customs will continue to maintain strict surveillance and enforcement measures against all forms of drug smuggling, including through international mail channels,” the statement concluded.

Earlier, a Pakistani navy ship seized narcotics worth more than $972 million from sailboats in the Arabian Sea, according to a statement Tuesday from the naval network overseeing the operation.

The Combined Maritime Force (CMF), a naval partnership that includes the United States, said the Pakistani naval vessel last week intercepted two different dhow sailing boats within 48 hours.

The crew seized several tons of crystal methamphetamine and a smaller amount of cocaine, the CMF statement said.

The intercepted vessels were “identified as having no nationality”, it said without indicating where they had originated.

It was “one of the most successful narcotics seizures for CMF,” said Royal Saudi Naval Forces Commodore Fahad Aljoiad, commander of the CMF taskforce carrying out the operation.

The US Central Command in a post on X congratulated the CMF, which includes 47 countries’ navies and patrols more than 3 million square miles of sea including some of the world’s busiest shipping lanes to disrupt the smuggling of drugs and weapons.