TOKYO (TR) – Tokyo Metropolitan Police and customs officials have arrested six men, including a Pakistani used car dealer, for allegedly smuggling approximately 270 kilograms of methamphetamine with a staggering street value of 14.3 billion yen, reports Jiji Press (Apr. 7).
According to authorities, Bhat Shafqat Mushtaq, a 53-year-old Pakistani national of no known address, and five others are suspected of concealing approximately 270 kilograms of kakuseizai (methamphetamine) in a cargo ship container in the United Arab Emirates between December of last year and January of this year, along with bags of mineral powder, and importing it via Singapore to the Oi Wharf in Shinagawa Ward.
The 270 kilograms of methamphetamine were meticulously concealed inside 18 out of 742 bags containing what was falsely labeled as “talc powder” used for cosmetics, all packed into a shipping container.
After arrival, Tokyo Customs officials became suspicious of the shipment because there had been no previous record of talc powder being imported.
The suspects, who include at least one other Pakistani national and a Sri Lankan, were taken into custody by a joint task force consisting of the Tokyo Metropolitan Police, Tokyo Customs, the Japan Coast Guard, and the Narcotics Control Department.
Mushtaq and the others face charges of violating the Stimulants Control Law by importing illegal drugs for commercial profit.
During police questioning, Mushtaq fiercely denied the allegations, telling investigators, “I have absolutely no recollection of this.”
The container arrived at Ohi Wharf in Shinagawa Ward in December but sat suspiciously abandoned at the port. When an import declaration was finally filed in March, alert customs officials conducted an inspection of the long-unattended cargo and uncovered the multi-billion-yen drug stash.
Authorities suspect Mushtaq is an operative for a Pakistani drug-smuggling syndicate and are continuing their investigation to untangle the wider network behind the massive shipment.
