Police seize heroin concealed in courier parcel at JKIA

Police have interrogated two employees of an international courier company after a parcel containing drugs was intercepted at Jomo Kenyatta International Airport.

The head of Criminal Investigations at the airport, Mr Joseph Ngisa, said the two were questioned because they handled the parcel that had 285 grams of heroin with a street value of Sh280,000, after it was delivered by the sender.

The parcel had been dispatched from DHL headquarters in Nairobi and the destination address was indicated as Ontario in Canada.

“Nobody was arrested. We have the name and address of origin as given by the sender but we are also aware the details may be fictitious.

“We shall also seek assistance from Canada if need be, but the investigation at the moment is being conducted locally,” said Mr Ngisa.

The drugs were concealed in a voluminous book.

The entire parcel weighed three kilogrammes.

Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA) said its Customs and Border Control division officers discovered the drugs during a routine check at the DHL warehouse at JKIA.

However, DHL said they had alerted the authorities on the contents of the shipment, which they found suspicious after inspection.

"We can confirm that DHL staff proactively alerted law enforcement authorities to the contents of a shipment that was judged to be suspicious after a routine security inspection by DHL."

EXPORT TO CANADA

The carefully concealed package, marked as two books and an encyclopaedia, had been delivered for export to Canada through the international courier company.

KRA commissioner Julius Musyoki described the drugs as a brownish powder and laboratory tests confirmed it was the narcotic drug heroin.

“Following the seizure, the authority has cautioned international courier companies to exercise internal surveillance measures to avoid being used as transport conduits by unscrupulous drug traffickers,” according to a KRA statement.

The investigation is being carried out together with the anti-narcotics unit of the Directorate of Criminal Investigations.

“Our officers, assisted by sniffer dogs, among other technology solutions, have been on very high alert to ensure that prohibited substances are not exported or imported through our border points.

“The discovery at the DHL facility will be further investigated to ensure that the culprits are brought to book,” Mr Musyoki said.

He added that KRA officials at border points have been instructed to screen all parcels and letters.