mshipa
JF-Expert Member
- Jun 16, 2015
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Wana Jf,
Taarifa iliyoripotiwa na acount ya twiter ya Swahili Times inaeleza kuwa mfanyabiashara Benedict Assey amekamtwa na Lita 4000 za kemikali ya kutengeneza madawa ya kulevya aina ya heroin na milipuko.
Mwenye taarifa zaidi kuhusu huyu mfanyabiashara anaweza kushare nasi hapa na sisi tupate.
Karibuni kwa michango kumjua
=====================================================
Dar es Salaam. The Drugs Control and Enforcement Authority (DCEA) has seized over five tonnes of highly restricted chemicals that can be used in the production of heroin and improvised explosive devices (IEDs).
DCEA officers, in collaboration with the Tanzania Food and Drugs Authority (TFDA) and the office of the Government Chemist Laboratory Agency (GCLA), seized the dangerous chemicals at godowns at Mwenge in Dar es Salaam, Bagamoyo (a backyard storage) and Moshi last week.
It is the biggest seizure of such chemicals in Tanzania.
Authorities are still assessing the actual value of the precursor but sources at the anti-drugs commission say they could run into billions.
DCEA Commissioner General Rogers Sianga confirmed the seizure, saying a task force was working to establish legitimacy of importation of the chemicals whose supply and use is locally and internationally highly controlled.
The Citizen has learnt that the owner of the consignment, Dar es Salaam businessman Benedict Assey, was arrested and questioned over the haul. He was released on police bail.
Mr Assey has been using his company Tecno Net Scientific for importation of the chemicals for supply in authorised hospitals and labs, but under strict control.
The seizure follows suspicious order of the chemicals which Techno Net Scientific had placed from a France company in February.
The International Narcotics Control Board (INCB), an international expert body established to limit manufacturing and regulate distribution of narcotic drugs, first raised doubt about the quantity and the permit that was used to place the order.
The company is alleged to have used a forged permit to press the order in France. In Tanzania, permits to import chemicals are issued by the office of the Chief Government Chemistry.
DCEA also established that Techno Net Scientific was operating without certificate of registration which had expired in April last year.
A source confided to The Citizen the upon inspection at the godowns huge quantity of expired chemicals were discovered but re-labelled to show they were fit for use.
A task force that inspected the storage facilities also discovered they failed to meet safety standards set by the law.
Under the guidelines set by the chief government chemist, such chemicals are supposed to be stored at least a hundred meter distance from the community. The Mwenge godown is hardly ten metres from residential houses.
“These shortcomings may give room for proprietors to diverge the chemicals. There is also a danger that as we record success in controlling trafficking of drugs at entry point, traffickers are changing modus operandi to import precursor chemicals for illicit manufacture of narcotic drugs,” said a DCEA official who asked not to be named for not being a spokesperson of the authority.
Authorities in Tanzania are working closely with the IDCB to control importation and the use of precursor chemicals because they can easily be diverted to clandestine labs and used in the process of manufacturing narcotic drugs or psychotropic substance.
The INCB has urged countries to remain vigilant regarding not only regarding diversion of precursor chemicals from international trade but also regarding their diversion from domestic distribution channels. It encourages countries to pay particulars attention to the legitimate final use of key precursor chemicals and the quantity required for that purpose.
According to the 2016 International Narcotics Control Strategy (INCSR) report, precursor chemicals obtained primarily from sources in Asia are brought through Tanzania ports and used to produce methamphetamine and psychotropic substances in clandestine labs within Tanzania to supply domestic and international markets.
Tanzania was in the spotlight in January last year when Pakistan authorities seized 21.7 tonnes acetic anhydride worth Sh28 billion which originated in Dar es Salaam.
According to Pakistani news website, The International News, the quantity is by far the biggest quantity of acetic anhydride seized anywhere in the world.
Acetic anhydride is banned in many countries because it is used as the major precursor for production of heroin. It is also used in the manufacture of improvised explosive devices (IEDs).
Two officials of the GCLA were arrested in April this year allegedly for having role in illegally facilitating importation of the chemicals.
Chanzo: The Citizen
Taarifa iliyoripotiwa na acount ya twiter ya Swahili Times inaeleza kuwa mfanyabiashara Benedict Assey amekamtwa na Lita 4000 za kemikali ya kutengeneza madawa ya kulevya aina ya heroin na milipuko.
Mwenye taarifa zaidi kuhusu huyu mfanyabiashara anaweza kushare nasi hapa na sisi tupate.
Karibuni kwa michango kumjua
=====================================================
Dar es Salaam. The Drugs Control and Enforcement Authority (DCEA) has seized over five tonnes of highly restricted chemicals that can be used in the production of heroin and improvised explosive devices (IEDs).
DCEA officers, in collaboration with the Tanzania Food and Drugs Authority (TFDA) and the office of the Government Chemist Laboratory Agency (GCLA), seized the dangerous chemicals at godowns at Mwenge in Dar es Salaam, Bagamoyo (a backyard storage) and Moshi last week.
It is the biggest seizure of such chemicals in Tanzania.
Authorities are still assessing the actual value of the precursor but sources at the anti-drugs commission say they could run into billions.
DCEA Commissioner General Rogers Sianga confirmed the seizure, saying a task force was working to establish legitimacy of importation of the chemicals whose supply and use is locally and internationally highly controlled.
The Citizen has learnt that the owner of the consignment, Dar es Salaam businessman Benedict Assey, was arrested and questioned over the haul. He was released on police bail.
Mr Assey has been using his company Tecno Net Scientific for importation of the chemicals for supply in authorised hospitals and labs, but under strict control.
The seizure follows suspicious order of the chemicals which Techno Net Scientific had placed from a France company in February.
The International Narcotics Control Board (INCB), an international expert body established to limit manufacturing and regulate distribution of narcotic drugs, first raised doubt about the quantity and the permit that was used to place the order.
The company is alleged to have used a forged permit to press the order in France. In Tanzania, permits to import chemicals are issued by the office of the Chief Government Chemistry.
DCEA also established that Techno Net Scientific was operating without certificate of registration which had expired in April last year.
A source confided to The Citizen the upon inspection at the godowns huge quantity of expired chemicals were discovered but re-labelled to show they were fit for use.
A task force that inspected the storage facilities also discovered they failed to meet safety standards set by the law.
Under the guidelines set by the chief government chemist, such chemicals are supposed to be stored at least a hundred meter distance from the community. The Mwenge godown is hardly ten metres from residential houses.
“These shortcomings may give room for proprietors to diverge the chemicals. There is also a danger that as we record success in controlling trafficking of drugs at entry point, traffickers are changing modus operandi to import precursor chemicals for illicit manufacture of narcotic drugs,” said a DCEA official who asked not to be named for not being a spokesperson of the authority.
Authorities in Tanzania are working closely with the IDCB to control importation and the use of precursor chemicals because they can easily be diverted to clandestine labs and used in the process of manufacturing narcotic drugs or psychotropic substance.
The INCB has urged countries to remain vigilant regarding not only regarding diversion of precursor chemicals from international trade but also regarding their diversion from domestic distribution channels. It encourages countries to pay particulars attention to the legitimate final use of key precursor chemicals and the quantity required for that purpose.
According to the 2016 International Narcotics Control Strategy (INCSR) report, precursor chemicals obtained primarily from sources in Asia are brought through Tanzania ports and used to produce methamphetamine and psychotropic substances in clandestine labs within Tanzania to supply domestic and international markets.
Tanzania was in the spotlight in January last year when Pakistan authorities seized 21.7 tonnes acetic anhydride worth Sh28 billion which originated in Dar es Salaam.
According to Pakistani news website, The International News, the quantity is by far the biggest quantity of acetic anhydride seized anywhere in the world.
Acetic anhydride is banned in many countries because it is used as the major precursor for production of heroin. It is also used in the manufacture of improvised explosive devices (IEDs).
Two officials of the GCLA were arrested in April this year allegedly for having role in illegally facilitating importation of the chemicals.
Chanzo: The Citizen
