Major drug, counterfeit liquor busts in many cities


Turkish police seized 92 kilograms of heroin in a major drug bust in Istanbul Wednesday, security sources have confirmed.

Acting on a tipoff, teams from the Istanbul Gendarmerie Command pursued two suspects, who allegedly brought drugs from the western provinces and stored it in the city's Büyükçekmece district for later distribution, said the sources speaking on condition of anonymity.

Police in Beylikdüzü, a crowded suburb on Istanbul's European side, searched a truck thought to be carrying the drugs with the help of a sniffer dog and found the illegal substances in the truck bed. The two suspects in the truck were arrested.

Another operation took place in the southern province of Adana after 12 reported deaths in 24 days from counterfeit liquor consumption.

The operation was conducted by 500 police officers, who simultaneously raided 116 different addresses on Tuesday night.

They seized 432 bottles of counterfeit liquor, 500 smuggled cigarette packs, 50 craft brewing units, four rifles, two unregistered pistols as well as many other types of liquor and brewing equipment. Additionally, 3,280 liters of ethyl alcohol were seized during a police raid on a suspected bootlegging depot, which has been used as a manufacturing shop. Some 600 bottles of the apprehended ethyl alcohol were confiscated by the authorities for further investigation.