Mexican authorities arrested a foreign national in the Cancún International Airport on Tuesday after 1.2 million pesos worth of ketamine was found in his luggage.
According to the government’s monthly National Security Strategy report, the National Guard took a man into custody after a customs luggage scan found the substance concealed inside plastic bottles.
Ketamine, a psychotropic substance, is legal in Mexico for medicinal purposes if prescribed by a physician, but it is considered a controlled substance and illegal possession carries a four- to seven-year sentence.
The suspect, who appears to be in his mid-30s, had not been identified, nor had his nationality been made public as of Thursday, according to the newspaper Riviera Maya News. The authorities also declined to reveal the origin of the flight on which the man arrived in Cancún.
Official reports indicate 2 kilograms of ketamine were confiscated.
Other recent drug seizures in Mexico
The National Security Strategy report shared details of several other recent drug busts. They include:
- A joint operation carried out by the Defense Ministry, the National Guard and the Federal Attorney General’s Office (FGR) in Chihuahua netted the arrest of three men found in possession of weapons, cartridges and 950 grams of methamphetamine.
- Marines raided a residence in the Gustavo A. Madero borough of Mexico City and apprehended three men, while also seizing weapons and drugs.
- The Naval Ministry seized nearly 560 kilos of cocaine and 685 liters of contraband fuel off the coast of Oaxaca.
- Operations in the states of Jalisco, Michoacán, Sonora and Sinaloa resulted in 11 total arrests and the seizure of three long guns, 180 cartridges, three chargers, 18 IEDs (improvised explosive devices), three illegal slot machines, four vehicles and more than 120 kilos of methamphetamine.
With reports from Milenio, Infobae and Riviera Maya News
