Singapore anti-drugs agents make largest drugs seizure in decades with $1.7 million haul

Singapore’s anti-drugs authority announced on Monday that it has seized the nation’s largest haul of illegal substances in 25 years, after busting an attempt to distribute around US$1.7 million worth of narcotics.

The Central Narcotics Bureau (CNB) detained a 22-year-old man on Friday afternoon after raiding a property that contained 23.7kg of cannabis, 16.5kg of heroin, 2kg of methamphetamine and 110 ecstasy tablets, valued at S$2.3 million (US$1.7 million).

The drug operation marks the CNB’s largest seizure of cannabis since 1996 and the authority’s biggest haul of heroin since 2001. If the narcotics had made it onto the streets, authorities believe they could have reached the hands of 7,800 heroin addicts, 1,160 methamphetamine users, and 3,380 cannabis smokers.

Singapore has strict, zero-tolerance anti-drug laws, ranging from caning to life in prison or the death penalty, depending on the amount of drugs someone is caught with. Possessing more than 15g of heroin or 500g of cannabis carries a mandatory death penalty.

“The fact is that internationally or regionally, the drug situation is worsening. So, [in] Singapore, we are monitoring the situation very closely,” Assistant Commissioner Sng Chern Hong warned at a press conference.

We maintain our vigilance at the borders together with our Home Team counterparts to ensure that drugs do not come in.

Authorities are still investigating the suspect’s activities and the extent of their drug trafficking. It’s not known if the CNB believes another party was involved or if the individual is part of a wider network.

This is the agency’s second sizable drugs haul in recent months, after the CNB announced on March 18 that S$1.7 million (US$1.28 million) worth of cannabis, heroin and methamphetamines had been seized in a raid on a number of properties across the country. Three individuals were arrested during that operation.

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