DUSHANBE, January 25, 2010, Asia-Plus  -- Officers from the Drug Control Agency have reportedly broken up an organized criminal group, which was engaged in smuggling Afghan drugs into Central Asia and Russia via territory of Tajikistan for a long time.

According to the DCA press service, a multi-stage operation by Tajik drug control officers led to the arrest of leader of that criminal group in Khatlon’s Hamadoni district on January 22.  He proved to be a 31-year-old Afghan national and more than 43 kilograms of cannabis were confiscated from him.

Criminal proceedings have been instituted against him under the provisions of articles 200, part 4 (drug trafficking), 289, part 3 (contraband) and 335, part 2 (illegally crossing national border) of Tajikistan’s Penal Code and an investigation is under way.