Suspected Tanzanian drug kingpin arrested in joint operation with Kenya
Tanzania's anti-drug agency says Mombasa-based businessman Salehe Baseleman, alias Mbwiga, was arrested with Kenya's help. He is accused of sourcing drugs from Afghanistan and shipping them by sea to the Mombasa coast.
Tanzania's Drug Control and Enforcement Authority (DCEA) says it has arrested a Tanzanian businessman living in Mombasa. It describes him as a key figure in an international drug network. According to Daily News Tanzania, Salehe Baseleman, alias Mbwiga, is suspected of sourcing drugs directly from Afghanistan. He allegedly shipped them by sea to the Mombasa coast and then distributed them to other countries, including Tanzania. Mbwiga is one of seven suspects arrested in a special operation in Tanzania and Kenya. DCEA Commissioner General Aretas Lyimo announced the arrests in Dar es Salaam on Monday. He said the network operated in Afghanistan, South Africa, Mozambique, Zambia, Malawi, Uganda, Kenya, Tanzania and Dubai. Lyimo also linked Mbwiga to 3.5 tonnes of narcotics that DCEA seized in Kigamboni, Dar es Salaam, and Iringa Region in December 2023. The case began in Tanzania. Officers found 299 packages of narcotics hidden in two Ford Ranger vehicles: 24 packages of heroin and 275 of methamphetamine. Both vehicles were impounded. Four men were arrested. They are Ugandan driver Juma…
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