TWO Indians, one Latvian, 23.7 kilogrammes of heroin seized at the RGM International Airport in Harare, in just ONE MONTH.
The numbers are just staggering and, in a graphic way,
illustrate the growing drugs problem, which is now facing this country.
When one considers there is a likelihood part of the
contraband slipped through the scrutiny of the security forces, whose vigilance
has to be commended, the situation becomes even more frightening.
What cannot be denied is that Zimbabwe has probably become
a key transit point for these drug barons who are using the same routes, a
flight to Addis Ababa and then off to India.
On Friday, an Indian man appeared in court after being
allegedly found in possession of 7kgs of heroin.
Ronald Florentius Paes, 66, was not asked to plead when he
appeared before magistrate Taurai Manuwere, who remanded him in custody.
Earlier last week, another Indian man, Gowda Nabin Chandra,
61, was also arrested and appeared in court after being found in possession of
7.7kgs of heroin.
The court heard that on Wednesday last week, detectives
from the CID Drugs and Narcotics Unit received a tip-off that Paes was in
possession of heroin, which he intended to smuggle to India.
The detectives waylaid Paes at the RGM International
Airport and intercepted him during check-in time.
They observed Paes was carrying a red bag, a black suitcase
and a backpack.
Paes did all the check-in formalities and handed over the
red bag to be loaded as baggage.
The police then approached him and requested to have the
bag scanned.
The bag was taken to the aviation security scanner which
detected that it had suspicious content.
The bag was opened in his presence and the police allegedly
recovered two transparent bags of heroin glued to the bottom side of the bag.
Upon arrest, the police established that Paes had an Indian
passport and had boarding passes to Addis Ababa en-route to India.
They recovered 7.3kgs of heroin.
His Indian counterpart, Chandra, was found in possession of
7.7kgs of heroin.
He has already appeared in court.
Chandra, 61, was not asked to plead when he appeared before
Harare magistrate Taurai Manuwere.
He was remanded in custody.
The court heard that last Sunday, cops from the CID
Narcotics Unit received information that Chandra was in possession of a
navy-blue suitcase, which had suspicious contents, at the RGM International
Airport.
They went to the screening area, where he had completed
immigration and customs formalities, to board an Ethiopia Airways flight.
He was summoned to the scanning point where his suitcase
was searched and the police recovered the heroin stuffed in the lining of the
bag.
The contraband was tightly wrapped with brown adhesive tape
packed in a transparent polythene pack.
Chandra was arrested and it was established that he had an
Indian passport and an air ticket to Addis Ababa, en-route to India.
A preliminary field test was done on the contraband in his
presence and it tested positive for heroin.
Earlier this month, a Latvian man, Vitalis Kudrjasovs, was
also arrested at the same airport and appeared in court over similar drug
charges. H Metro
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