Court in Seychelles keeps Tanzanian man in custody on heroin charges

The logo of the Anti-Narcotics Bureau. (Anti-Narcotics Bureau)

(Seychelles News Agency) - The Seychelles’ Magistrate’s Court on Tuesday remanded a Tanzanian man arrested by authorities last week in possession of 1.4 kg of what is suspected to be heroin, the Anti-Narcotics Bureau said.

The 36-year-old male was arrested by officers of the Anti-Narcotics Bureau (ANB) of Seychelles on Thursday last week and has been remanded for 12 days. He will reappear before the court on June 8 while ANB continues its investigation.

According to the Anti-Narcotic Bureau, the man was arrested in possession of 77 bullets containing what is suspected to be heroin weighing approximately 1.4 kg in total.

The Bureau's communiqué said that the Tanzanian national was arrested on the same day of his arrival after landing at the Seychelles International Airport while travelling from Mozambique on board an Ethiopian Airline flight.

The communiqué added that before finally reaching Seychelles, a group of 115 islands in the western Indian Ocean, the man transited via Tanzania, South Africa and Ethiopia.

A spokesperson at ANB told SNA that the Bureau has observed: “that drug traffickers are frequently using these travelling routes.”

The Tanzanian national is the fourth foreigner to be arrested this year in possession of illegal drugs.

On April 23, the Seychelles’ Supreme Court charged a 31-year-old female Mozambican for the offence of the importation of a controlled drug.

The Bureau said that “the Mozambican was arrested with approximately 3 kg of suspected heroin in her luggage.”

On the same date, a 47-year old Malagasy was charged by the Seychelles’ Supreme Court for being in possession of 1 kg of what is suspected to be heroin.

Also in April, a Kenyan woman in possession of 210 grammes of cocaine was arrested and subsequently charged by the Seychelles’ Supreme Court.