18-year-old arrested with nearly 3kg of heroin in Tangalle

An 18-year-old youth was arrested by law enforcement officers with nearly 3 kilograms of heroin in his possession during a targeted raid conducted at a residence in the Yayawatta area of Palapotha, Tangalle.

Police acted upon specific intelligence gathered regarding a regional narcotics supply chain operating in the southern coastal belt. During the search, officers recovered the packaged heroin along with weighing equipment and multiple mobile devices suspected to have been used in illicit drug transactions.

Investigators are interrogating the suspect to identify key distributors and financial handlers backing the operation, suspecting that the teenager may have been recruited as a courier by an organized crime syndicate.

The suspect is scheduled to be produced before the Tangalle Magistrate's Court, while police seek detention orders to conduct extensive interrogations under the Dangerous Drugs Ordinance.