The Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) on Friday arrested a Polish citizen with heroin worth Ksh3.2 million at the Jomo Kenyatta International Airport (JKIA).
In a statement, the agency revealed that the anti-narcotics sleuths based at JKIA nabbed the foreigner, aged 37 at JKIA's terminal 1C with the drugs, a few moments before boarding a Hungary-bound Egyptian airplane.
According to the agency, the Budapest-bound trafficker has since been booked in police cells awaiting further processing and arraignment.
The drug which is suspected to be heroin, was found stuffed inside the drug trafficker's luggage.
Anti-Narcotics Directorate Margaret Karanja issued a stern warning to individuals found trafficking or peddling drugs, vowing the wrath of the law on perpetrators.
“All those caught up in the ring of traffickers and peddlers will be treated with the severity of the law, despite their roles in the trade," the agency said.
DCI reiterated that the arrest comes at a time when security agencies in the country have launched a crackdown on an illicit drug trafficking syndicate.
According to a report by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), drug trafficking has recorded a surge along the Kenyan coast over the years.
As part of the counter-drug trafficking operations in the country, the UNODC trained 20 officers from the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) and the Kenya Coast Guard Service (KCGS) to combat the operations on land and at sea.
The report advocated for stronger coordination between the DCI and KCGS in order to produce significant changes on drug-related seizure in Kenya.
"Under the Global Maritime Crime Program, and with continued support from the United States, UNODC will facilitate similar but tailored drug investigation and operational planning courses in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania and Maputo, Mozambique," the report said.
