Over 1.5 tons of heroin seized in eastern Turkey

By Ilhami Erkilic

ERZURUM, Turkey (AA) - Turkish police have confiscated more than 1.5 tons of heroin in the eastern province of Erzurum, marking the largest heroin seizure in the country's history, local officials said on Sunday.

A total of 1 ton and 535 kilograms of heroin was found hidden among marble stones in 17 large sacks in a long-rig truck on Jan. 24, the governor's office of Erzurum said in a written statement.

This was the largest amount seized in a single anti-drug operation in the country, the statement read.

The truck, en route from Iran to Istanbul, was stopped by an anti-drug squad of Turkish police.

The driver of the vehicle along with three other suspects in Istanbul, to whom the heroin would be handed over, were arrested on charges of drug trafficking.

According to police data, Turkish security forces have caught a total of 17.3 tons of heroin in 2018, arresting more than 1,500 suspects.