Georgian law enforcement officers seize 157 kg of heroin at Georgia’s Red Bridge border crossing

Georgian law enforcement officers have seized 157 kilograms of heroin smuggled into the country through the Red Bridge border checkpoint, reported on Wednesday the Ministry of Internal Affairs.

Speaking at a briefing, Deputy Minister of Internal Affairs Aleksandre Darakhvelidze said the narcotics were hidden in a specially constructed compartment inside a truck trailer. The traffickers attempted to conceal the particularly large quantity of heroin among marble tiles. The estimated value of the seized drugs on the so-called black market is around ₾50 million.

An Iranian citizen has been arrested on charges of illegal acquisition, storage, and large-scale smuggling of narcotic substances into Georgia.

According to the investigation, on December 30, officers of the Ministry of Internal Affairs uncovered and prevented one of the largest cases of drug smuggling into Georgia. The truck entered the country from a neighboring state via the Red Bridge customs checkpoint, where law enforcement officers discovered the heroin in a hidden compartment of the trailer.

Darakhvelidze thanked the officers of the Central Criminal Police and the Customs Departments of the Revenue Service for jointly revealing this largest case of heroin importation.

The investigation is underway under Articles 260 and 262 of the Criminal Code of Georgia, which provides for imprisonment for up to 20 years or life imprisonment.

Darakhvelidze noted that the Ministry continues its fight against drug-related crime on a 24-hour basis, placing special emphasis on identifying drug dealers and ensuring they are punished with the full severity of the law.

Over the past seven months alone, dozens of attempts to smuggle narcotics into the country have been thwarted, hundreds of kilograms of drugs have been seized, and more than 5,000 individuals have been arrested and prosecuted for drug-related crimes, including up to 2,000 people involved in drug distribution.