Drug Seizures in Armenia Double to 415 kg in 9 Months

The number of detected cases of illicit drug trafficking has increased by 18.1 percent. The Minister of Internal Affairs, presenting these figures in the National Assembly, considers the increase natural: if the state is fighting against illicit drug trafficking, it means we should have an increase in statistical terms. Arpine Sargsyan addressed the volumes of seized drugs.

"As a result of the work undertaken by the law enforcement system, over a nine-month period, 415 kilograms and 281 grams of various types of drugs have been seized and removed from illicit circulation, which is almost twice as much as in the same nine-month period of the previous year. In the nine months of the previous year, we had removed about 205 kilograms of drugs from circulation. I should note that of the seized drugs, 37 kilograms and 175 grams are of synthetic types. Why do I want to single this out? Because, in tactical terms, we pay special attention to those drugs that can have a greater impact on people's health, and accordingly, the strategy has also provided for a certain categorization in this logic," noted Arpine Sargsyan.

During the reporting period, i.e., over nine months, the police alone seized 290 kilograms and 680 grams of various types of drugs, which is about 128 kilograms more than the figures recorded by the police in the previous year.