Anti-Narcotics Department destroys millions of seized illicit drugs

AMMAN — The Anti-Narcotics Department (AND) on Wednesday destroyed a large quantity of illicit drugs seized in 58 drug bust operations.

“The destroyed drugs today were part of cases that were upheld by the Court of Cassation,” Police Spokesperson Lt. Col. Amer Sartawi said.

The destroyed illicit drugs included  14,000,000 Captagon, pills, 686 kilogrammes of Hashish, 21 kilogrammes of marijuana, 13 kilogrammes of Crystal meth and 2,380 of cocaine, Sartawi told The Jordan Times.

The destruction of illicit drugs is part of the Public Security Directorate’s (PSD) strategies to prevent drug smuggling through border crossings into the Kingdom, according to the police official.

The PSD said its strategies are implemented in cooperation with the Jordan Armed Forces-Arab Army, relevant security agencies and the Customs Department, the police official added.

 “The PSD's efforts are geared towards implementing the law and protecting society from the scourge of drugs while ensuring that those involved in drug-related crimes are brought to justice,” according to Sartawi.

The illicit drugs were burned in special ovens at temperatures of up to 1000°C to ensure their destruction and strip the resulting materials of any narcotic properties, according to a PSD statement.

In May of this year, AND burnt 1,141,000 Captagon pills, 2,211 kilogrammes of hashish, 118 kilogrammes of marijuana, nine kilogrammes of cocaine, 23 kilogrammes of Crystal meth, six kilogrammes of Joker powder, 1,250 kilogrammes of khat, and 20,000 other narcotic pills that were seized in 107 cases.

Earlier in the year, AND officials said approximately 23,000 drug-related cases were recorded in Jordan in 2023, involving more than 35,000 individuals, with about 13,000 suspects apprehended for alleged drug trafficking or distribution.

Officials said that the seized quantities of drugs in 2023 in cooperation with the Jordan Armed Forces-Arab Army, customs, and other security agencies were approximately 6,200 kilogrammes of hashish, 6.5 kilogrammes of heroin, around 19 million Captagon pills, 141.5 kilogrammes of cocaine, 15 kilogrammes of Joker powder, and about 70.5 kilogrammes of crystal meth.