Bangladesh’s Rapid Action Battalion (RAB) has detained nine individuals and seized 460,000 Yaba tablets from a fishing trawler in the estuary of the Bakkhali River near the coastal city of Cox’s Bazar.

The operation, conducted on the night of Tuesday (August 26), also led to the confiscation of the trawler used in the smuggling operation, according to Assistant Director and Assistant Superintendent of Police A. M. Faruq of RAB-15.

The detainees were identified as Md Abbas Uddin (48), Md Abu Taher (42), Md Firoz (38), Md Mostak Ahmad (40), Md Nabi Hossain (38), Md Shahab Uddin (55), Md Selim (68), Jafar Alam (63), and Abul Kalam, also known as Kalu (70). All are residents of various upazilas within Cox’s Bazar district.

ASP Faruq said RAB had received intelligence indicating that a large consignment of Yaba tablets was being transported from Teknaf to Cox’s Bazar via a fishing trawler.

Acting on this tip-off, and with assistance from the Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB), surveillance was mounted. The fishing vessel was intercepted at the Bakkhali River estuary and searched, leading to the discovery of 460,000 Yaba tablets hidden inside an oil drum using a concealed compartment.

The vessel was immediately seized as part of the operation.

Preliminary interrogation of the suspects revealed that the trawler was owned by Md Borhan Uddin, believed to be the mastermind behind the drug shipment. A resident of Maheshkhali, Borhan Uddin is currently on the run.

According to RAB, the arrested individuals have been involved in narcotics trafficking for an extended period, using increasingly sophisticated smuggling techniques. Legal action has been initiated against the suspects.