Saudi authorities on Tuesday foiled attempts to smuggle 308.6 kilograms of hashish and 23.7 tons of khat into the Kingdom.
Lt. Col. Misfer bin Ghannam Al-Quraini, spokesman for the Border Guards, said that coastal patrols in Ras Tanura in the Eastern Province thwarted a bid to sneak 220.6 kilograms of hashish into the country, and in another operation stopped 88 kilograms of hashish and 23.7 tons of khat entering the Kingdom.
Security officials also seized 14,224 pills subject to the regulation of medical circulation in Jazan region.
Twelve people were arrested, five of them Ethiopians, four Saudis, and three Yemenis, Al-Quraini revealed, adding that legal procedures had been completed, and the seized goods had been handed over to the relevant authority.
Capt. Mohammed Al-Najidi, the spokesman for the General Directorate of Narcotics Control, said that security officials were following up on the activities of criminal networks that smuggle narcotics into the Kingdom when they arrested the suspect.
According to the police, he received the drugs in the Sabya governorate in Jazan and was trying to distribute the narcotics.
Authorities also seized a firearm and more than 100 rounds of ammunition in his possession.
Al-Najidi said preliminary legal measures have been taken against the suspect and his case has been referred to the Public Prosecution branch.
Customs officers in Saudi Arabia foiled attempts by two airline passengers to smuggle more than 1.6 kilograms of cocaine into the Kingdom.
The Zakat, Tax and Customs Authority at King Abdul Aziz International Airport in Jeddah said inspectors suspicious of a female passenger arriving in the Kingdom carried out an X-ray that revealed 60 capsules in her stomach. They were found to contain 683.5 grams of the drug.In a similar case, this time involving a male passenger, inspectors found 80 capsules containing 918.5 grams of cocaine.
The authority said swallowing capsules of drugs such as heroin or cocaine is a common method used by smugglers. It added that customs officers at land, sea and airports work tirelessly to foil the attempts and seize shipments in an effort to maintain security and protect Saudi society.
