Staff Reporter :
Authorities at Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport (HSIA), Dhaka have arrested a Guyanese national with 8.5 kilograms of cocaine worth Tk130 crore, marking the largest cocaine seizure in Bangladesh’s history.
The suspect, identified as Karen Petula Stuffle, was arrested on Tuesday morning after customs officials, acting on a tip-off, intercepted a Qatar Airways flight from Doha.
According to the Customs Intelligence and Investigation Directorate (CIID), Stuffle’s luggage was scanned following her arrival at around 2:30am. Officials discovered 22 foil-wrapped packets of cocaine hidden inside three large jars.
Tests conducted by the airport unit of the Department of Narcotics Control (DNC) confirmed the substance as cocaine.
The seizure was carried out in the presence of multiple intelligence and law enforcement agencies.
Stuffle, along with the narcotics, has been handed over to the Airport Police Station, where a case is being prepared under relevant drug control laws.
This bust surpasses the previous record from January 2024, when a Malawian woman was caught with 8.3kg of cocaine, valued at over Tk100 crore, at the same airport.
Officials have long warned that Bangladesh is being used as a transit hub for international cocaine syndicates.
Meanwhile, the DNC carried out a series of anti-narcotics operations across Dhaka on Sunday, seizing yaba pills, crystal meth (ice), and cannabis. Four people were detained.
In Adabor, a team arrested Md Khairul Islam alias Rian with 4,000 yaba tablets. Based on his information, another raid in Mohammadpur’s Shekhertek led to the recovery of 1.6kg of crystal meth from drug trader Milan Mollah.
At the Foreign Post Office in Paltan, a separate DNC team seized 280 grams of Tetrahydrocannabinol (kush) smuggled in from Australia.
A suspect named Shahidul Islam (45) was arrested from the spot.
Bangladesh has witnessed a steady rise in cocaine trafficking cases over the last decade.
In June 2023, an Indian woman was arrested at Dhaka airport with 1.8kg of cocaine.
In 2020, RAB busted a gang with 2kg of cocaine.
In 2017, 750g were recovered from a FedEx parcel sent from Uganda.
In 2015, officials seized 3kg at Dhaka airport, while the same year liquid cocaine hidden in sunflower oil drums was discovered at Chattogram Port.
Earlier in 2013, a Peruvian citizen was arrested in Dhaka’s Karwan Bazar with 3kg of cocaine.
Officials say the latest recovery demonstrates the growing role of Bangladesh in global cocaine trafficking networks and highlights the need for intensified vigilance at key entry points.
