Marijuana worth thousands bound for Daru intercepted

THOUSANDS of kina worth of marijuana headed for Daru in Western was intercepted by employees of Express Mail Services (EMS) following a routine check on a cargo last Thursday.
Amos Tepi, the deputy logistic manager for EMS, said a man went to the company’s Boroko office to send the package to another worker at the Daru hospital.
“The marijuana was neatly concealed in small parcels and packed into an urn,” Tepi said.
“When our officers started to unpack the box to see what was inside, the suspect realised that he was in trouble and snuck out undetected.”
The value of the dried marijuana could not be established by EMS staff but it was believed to be worth thousands of kina.
Tepi said when they found that the urn contained marijuana, they alerted Customs and police but the man had already fled.
“We have a very strict screening process because of the type of work we do,” he said.
Tepi said that cargo for airlifting required scanning by an X-ray machine to ensure the contents were not dangerous or illegal.
Police confirmed the discovery yesterday and said the identity of the suspect was known and that investigations were underway.
They are also investigating the alleged recipient of the cargo in Daru.