A small cache of homemade explosives and landmines were seized in a village in Maungdaw Township on Tuesday, while in separate incidents police searched two vehicles where they uncovered narcotics with a street value of more than US$2 million.
Acting on a tip-off from residents in Letphwekya Village, security forces uncovered the cache of weapons beside a riverbank on Tuesday evening. Military authorities reported they had seized: six homemade landmines with remote controls; long iron pipes; two round mines; a car piston; eight transmitter remote controls; two receiver circuits; more than 100 feet of wiring; and a damaged CDMA 450 MHz phone.
Security forces have been conducting clearance operations in the area; however no statement has yet been made linking the explosives to any armed group.
Also on Tuesday, police found four bags of methamphetamine pills when they searched a vehicle at a checkpoint entering Maungdaw town.
The driver of the vehicle reportedly evaded arrest by fleeing on foot. He was named as Min Aung Naing. Two other men, who were passengers in the black Nissan, were arrested and taken to Maungdaw district police station.
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Police said the “speed” pills in the bags were worth 1.9 billion kyat.
Similarly, in Maungdaw’s Ward 5 on Tuesday, a police patrol stopped and searched a Hi-Jet truck where they uncovered 487,500 methamphetamine pills with a street value of 975 million kyat. The driver, named as Nyi Nyi, was arrested and is likewise being detained in Maungdaw township police station where he is being questioned, a police statement said.