DHAKA: Bangladeshi authorities have confirmed that cocaine was hidden in a shipment of edible oil seized in the port city of Chittagong.
The authorities confirmed the findings on Tuesday after 107 barrels were seized earlier in the year — reportedly the largest shipment of “liquid cocaine” ever retrieved — but said they were not sure exactly how much cocaine had been hidden in the intercepted shipment from Bolivia.
The Narcotic Department’s chief chemist Dulal Krishna Saha confirmed to Anadolu Agency that cocaine was found in the barrels after a retest last week.
“Edible oil and cocaine don’t mix. If you put edible oil with cocaine and leave it untouched for a certain time, the cocaine goes down to the bottom of the container. Then you can collect the cocaine from the container’s bottom,” he explained.
Bangladeshi police said in June that the consignments were headed for India but were not sure whether that was the final destination.
The cocaine seizure highlighted the increasing use of Chittagong as a transit point for drug smugglers.
This year Chittagong has seen a spike in seizures of Yaba tablets, known as the “madness pill”, which are smuggled from across Bangladesh’s eastern border with Myanmar.
Earlier September, Bangladesh’s Home Minister Asaduzzaman Kamal had to defend Abdur Rahman Bodi, the ruling Awami League’s Member of Parliament in Cox’s Bazar, which borders Myanmar, against allegations that he and his family were heavily involved in Yaba smuggling.
