The psychotropic pills arrived in Tangier Med from an Asian country and were intended for a country in sub-Saharan Africa, according to preliminary data.
Rabat – Morocco’s police in Tangier-Med thwarted on Thursday an international trafficking operation of psychotropic drugs in collaboration with the American Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA).
Police operating in the site seized 490,000 psychotropic tablets bearing “Tafradol” tags, said a statement from the General Directorate of National Security (DSGN).
Tafradol is a rebranded version of the antidepressant Tramadol, an Indian-manufactured opiate-based drug that is particularly popular in Nigeria, but can be lethal in high doses.
Preliminary investigation said the psychotropic tablets were concealed in a container taken on board a ship from an Asian country and illegally bound for a country in sub-Saharan Africa.
Police opened a judicial investigation to determine the circumstances of the case.
Police also sent samples of the tablets to a laboratory for testing in order to reveal the chemical components in the product.
The cooperation is part of direct cooperation between DGSN and the American DEA to fight against drug and psychotropic trafficking on a global scale, the statement said.
The national central office (NCB), part of Morocco’s DGSN, is investigating the case in collaboration with the DEA and Interpol to determine possible international links with organized crime networks.
Morocco’s security services have frequently carried out similar cooperative initiatives with international partners against drug trafficking.
On Thursday, customs services seied 1,796 psychotropic tablets in the Tangier Ibn Battouta Airport
Police has detained a Moroccan citizen, who arrived on board a flight from Madrid, for investigation.
DGSN’s 2020 annual report said police seized 476,923 psychotropic tablets, including 145,848 MDMA tablets smuggled from European countries.
During the same year, police arrested 97,564 people for their involvement in drug trafficking. The number represents a decline of 23% compared to 2019.
