Smuggling of the deadly drug Yaba into Bangladesh has not stopped yet despite the government’s crackdown against the banned narcotic as top smugglers are going unpunished.

Detective sources said only grass-roots traders are being arrested with Yaba tablets in different places of the country, but their ringleaders remain out of touch.
Recently, 102 listed Yaba smugglers, including 16 relatives of former lawmaker Bodi, have surrendered to law enforcers in Teknaf of Cox’s Bazar, they mentioned.

Over 50 top drug traffickers, including some godfathers and police officers, who are on the list of the home ministry, have still remained out of tough, they added.

Intelligence wings of law enforcement agencies have identified around 1,000 drug traders and 500 drug spots in the capital.

Police sources said a striking team will go on tough action against the policemen who assist the listed drug traders in running their drug business in exchange for money.

Muhammad Ahsanul Jabbar, director general of the Directorate of Narcotics Control (DNC), told a press briefing last week that they have information from the intelligence on 49 clandestine labs in Myanmar.

“All the labs located at border points between Bangladesh and Myanmar produce Yaba tablets,” he added.
The banned drug is being smuggled into Bangladesh from neighbouring Myanmar through the border points of Teknaf in Cox’s Bazar, he added.

Meanwhile, Dhaka Metropolitan Police (DMP) arrested a total of 57 suspected drug dealers and drug addicts in separate drives in different parts of the capital in the last 24 hours till Tuesday morning.

During the drives, the striking teams also seized some 5,585 Yaba tablets and other drugs.

Deputy Commissioner (media) Walid Hossain said the DMP has intensified crackdown against Yaba and other narcotic drugs.

“Law enforcers were conducting a massive crackdown on the listed drug smugglers in the capital,” he added.

Meanwhile, a Yaba trader was killed in a gunfight with a team of the Rapid Action Battalion in Teknaf of Cox's Bazar last night.

The elite force also seized 10,000 Yaba tablets, a firearm, a knife and three bullets from the spot, RAB said.

Two RAB personnel suffered wounds in the gunfight, RAB-15 said in a text message on Tuesday.

RAB-15 Assistant Superintendent of Police Md Shah Alam said an RAB team saw a group of people running while patrolling Baharchara area last night.

Seeing this, the elite force chased the group who shot at the RAB team, he added.

In self-defence, the RAB personnel fired back, forcing the criminals to flee the scene, he added.

After the gunfight, they found a bullet-hit unidentified criminal, the RAB official said.

He was rushed to Teknaf Upazila Health Complex where doctors declared him dead. The body was kept at Teknaf Police Station, he added.