The press service of the National Security Committee has reported the seizure of a record shipment of psychotropic substances in Almaty. The laboratory for the manufacture of synthetic drugs was organized in a private house, which reportedly was rented. The organizer of the illegal drug laboratory was a 26-year-old citizen of Kazakhstan.
During the operation, the service seized more than 200kg of finished mephedrone, which is approximately equal to 610,000 single doses, as well as more than 100 liters of raw materials for its subsequent manufacture. Such a volume of finished substances indicates that the laboratory was the largest in the country.
The investigation revealed that the entire volume of psychotropic substances was intended for distribution in Kazakhstan. The owner of the drug laboratory has been detained and is in custody awaiting trial.
Over the past year, the drug situation in Central Asian countries has been characterized by an increase in the production of opiates and methamphetamine in Afghanistan, the emergence of new types of synthetic drugs and methods of their distribution.
The increase in drug turnover in Central Asian countries for 2023 exceeded 100%. From January to September 2023 alone, more than 40 tons of precursors were seized from illicit trafficking, which is 144% or more than in the same period of 2022.
