Ingenious Deception: Heroin Concealed in Plastic Potatoes Smuggled

Authors: Premathilaka UWS* , Kodithuwakku KADC and Rajapakse PSK

DOI: 10.23880/ijfsc-16000441

Volume 10, Issue 2

Abstract

Drug trafficking, the most widespread and profitable form of organized crime globally, continuously evolves to outsmart law enforcement through innovative methods such as concealing drugs in maritime vessels, semi-submersible vessels, small aircraft, drones, hidden vehicle compartments, and commercial shipments. A recent case in Kochchikade, Negombo, Sri Lanka, where 388 plastic potatoes total containing 96.28 kilograms of brown colored powder were confiscated in a consignment from Pakistan, exemplifies these challenges. Initial suspicions led the Police Narcotics Bureau, Sri Lanka to a warehouse inspection, resulting in arrests and ongoing investigations. The detection methods employed included Thin Layer Chromatography (TLC), Gas Chromatography with Mass Spectrometry (GC/MS), Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FTIR) for qualitative analysis, and Gas Chromatography with Flame Frame Ionization Detector (GC-FID) for quantitative analysis. As a result, heroin was detected in the brown colored powder by TLC, GC/MS, and FTIR and heroin was quantified using GC-FID. The analysis revealed that 67.76 kilograms of the brown-colored powder contained heroin (Diacetylmorphine (DAM)), with a purity level of 70.38 ±1.78 %.

Keywords: Heroin; Concealment Methods; Smuggling; Qualitative Analysis; GC/MS; GC-FID

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