Serbian police seize 42 kilograms of drugs hidden in truck tank at Preševo border crossing

(Patria) - Serbian police seized 42.3 kilograms of drugs at the Preševo border crossing with North Macedonia.

During this operation, a Bulgarian citizen with initials I.N.I. (born 1980) was arrested upon entering Serbia, the Serbian Ministry of Internal Affairs announced today.

As explained by the Customs Administration, 63 packages of a powdery substance, suspected to be amphetamine, were hidden in the tank of a truck.

The case was discovered yesterday when a truck with foreign license plates, traveling from Greece to Belgium, was selected for inspection on a mobile customs scanner upon entering Serbia.

Analysis of the scanner images revealed irregularities in the fuel tank area, which had been modified for smuggling purposes, the Customs Administration stated.

"Customs officers noticed that the space intended for smuggling was masked with special putty to make it appear factory-made.

A detailed inspection confirmed the suspicions indicated by the scanner images, as the interior of the tank was divided so that only one quarter could hold fuel, while the larger part of the tank was used to hide narcotics," the statement reads.

The suspect has been detained for up to 48 hours and will be brought before the Higher Public Prosecutor's Office in Vranje with a criminal complaint.