Officers at the specialized customs complex Tashkent-Aero, together with other law enforcement agencies, foiled two attempts to smuggle drugs into Uzbekistan through the capital's airport, the State Customs Committee's press service has reported.
The first case was uncovered on June 30. A passenger arriving on a flight from Bangkok to Tashkent, who was passing through the "green" customs channel, aroused the suspicion of customs officers.
A search of his carry-on luggage and checked baggage turned up more than 4.8 kg of marijuana. According to the agency, the drugs were being smuggled by a 44-year-old passenger.
The second case likewise involved a flight from Thailand. While inspecting the luggage of a 19-year-old citizen of a neighboring country who had arrived from Phuket, customs officers' attention was drawn to several packages of powdered milk.
Analysis by the Central Customs Laboratory revealed that 10 of the packages contained not a dairy product, but the synthetic drug mephedrone, weighing a total of 7 kg 180 g.
The State Customs Committee said the passenger had brought the drugs on the instructions of an unknown individual he had met through Telegram. He had been promised $1,000 for delivering the shipment to Tashkent.
One customs officer said the substance's pungent smell was what raised suspicion in the first place. According to him, the packages had been placed in thermal packaging and then wrapped further in an attempt to contain the odor.
The agency noted that, under Uzbek law, drug trafficking carried out by an organized group, across borders, or via the internet carries a sentence of 15 to 20 years' imprisonment. For large-scale drug trafficking, the minimum sentence has now been raised from 10 to 15 years.
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