By the Respondents' Reporter
Tanzania's Drug Control and Enforcement Authority (DCEA) said on Thursday it had seized 22.6 tonnes of illicit drugs and arrested 188 suspects during nationwide operations conducted in May and June, underscoring the government's intensified campaign against narcotics trafficking.
The operations resulted in the seizure of 22.6 tonnes of illegal drugs, 30.5 litres of THC-containing beverages, and 19.94 kilograms of controlled pharmaceutical substances.
Authorities also destroyed 228.5 acres of cannabis farms and incinerated an additional 3.3 tonnes of cannabis and khat (miraa).
Six vehicles, two three-wheelers and 33 motorcycles linked to the trafficking network were confiscated, according to the agency.
Among the most significant discoveries was a shipment labelled as AFA CELL (Moringa Extract) nutritional supplements intercepted at Julius Nyerere International Airport in Dar es Salaam. Laboratory analysis found the products contained Prazepam, a benzodiazepine-class controlled medicine used to treat anxiety and insomnia.
The shipment had arrived from Malaysia and was being prepared for export to Barbados. Three suspects were arrested in connection with the case.
In a separate operation, authorities, working alongside Tanzania's Government Chemist Laboratory Authority (GCLA), the Tanzania Bureau of Standards (TBS) and the Tanzania Medicines and Medical Devices Authority (TMDA), seized 122 cans of TRIP energy drinks from a supermarket in Dar es Salaam after tests detected tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), the psychoactive compound found in cannabis. Two suspects were detained as investigations continue.
The crackdown also uncovered significant quantities of khat, heroin and skunk cannabis in several regions, including Arusha, Kilimanjaro and Dar es Salaam.
Authorities said large-scale cannabis farms were destroyed in Dodoma, Lindi, Geita and Sengerema districts as part of the nationwide enforcement campaign.
DCEA said intelligence sharing with law enforcement agencies in Eswatini, South Africa, Mozambique and Zambia had identified Tanzanian nationals suspected of operating cross-border drug trafficking networks after fleeing to those countries.
The agency said joint operations with regional counterparts would continue to apprehend suspects and dismantle transnational criminal networks.
It also pledged closer monitoring of food supplements, medicines and chemical products, warning that traffickers are increasingly exploiting legitimate supply chains to conceal controlled substances.
