27kg of heroin found on PIA plane

Karachi 

Pakistan Customs officials discovered a huge quantity of heroin aboard an outbound plane at the Karachi airport on Wednesday.

A spokesman for the customs said staffers on duty in the international arrival hall searched the aircraft (AP-BGK-777) parked at Bay-2 inside Isphahani Hanger of the old terminal in the presence of engineering and security officials of the national airline after they had received a tip-off.

The search led to the discovery of nine cotton bags containing heroin powder weighing 27 kilograms in the rear portion of the plane near the kitchen.

The international market value of the heroin is estimated to be Rs140 million. 

The spokesman said the aircraft was deployed as PK-744 for an Islamabad-Jeddah flight on May 21, then as PK-760 for a Jeddah-Lahore flight on May 22 and finally as PK-305 for a Lahore to Karachi flight on the same day.  After landing at the Karachi port, the plane was parked in the maintenance hangar.

Four suspects held

The paramilitary Rangers announced the arrests of four suspects, including militants of a banned outfit, in raids.

The spokesman for the Sindh Rangers said personnel conducted raids in Muzaffarabad Colony, Landhi Town, Korangi Town, Gulberg Town, Lyari Town, Orangi Town, Manghopir, Ismail Town and Baldia Town, and arrested the four suspected criminals, including a terrorist of the banned Tehreek-e-Taliban. The Rangers claimed to have also seized weapons and 35 kilograms of hashish during the swoops.