Hungarian police wrapped up the country’s biggest ever series of drug raids resulting in the arrest of 109 people and seizure of 600 million forints (€1.47 million) of various drugs, National Police Headquarters announced at a press conference on Thursday.
“Nearly 2,000 law enforcement officers and uniformed personnel across the country took part in a coordinated operation involving drug crime rings, seizing 600 million forints worth of drugs and dismantling criminal gangs,” the National Police Headquarters (ORFK) reported at a joint press conference with the National Tax and Customs Office (NAV), the National Investigation Office of the Intervention Police (KR NNI), and the Budapest Police Headquarters (BRFK).
As detailed in a statement by the ORFK, plainclothes detectives gathered evidence necessary to dismantle the criminal gangs thanks to their prolonged surveillance activities. As a result of the raids, 298 people were questioned as suspects in 226 cases, 109 of whom were arrested and 91 of whom were ordered to be detained by the court.
The raids resulted in the seizure of 435 hectares of cannabis plants, 65 kilograms of marijuana plants, 10 kilograms of amphetamine-type substances, two kilograms of cocaine, two kilograms of herbal, three kilograms of cathinone derivatives, and more than 11 kilos of ketamine, with a total black market value of almost 600 million forints, the police said.
Investigators also found small amounts of anabolic steroids, recreational drugs, and sex-enhancing drugs. The coordinated raids resulted in the seizure of around 140 million forints in cash, tens of millions of forints worth of cars, jewelry, other property, a large amount of firearms and gas guns, as well as a pill crusher and a grinder.
As part of the operation, NAV staff, who constantly monitor the airport’s goods traffic and examine mail and packages — found more than 10 kilograms of drugs at Budapest Liszt Ferenc International Airport that had been shipped from the Netherlands.
