Underwater drone for drug trafficking to Turkey - such a scheme was being prepared, as the device could dive to a depth of up to 40 meters. During an operation near Tsarevo, nearly 100 kilograms of cannabis were found in a car, and drugs were also found in an establishment in Sunny Beach. The prosecutor's office has charged two men in the case.
The deputy director of the “Customs” Agency, Stefan Bakalov, spoke to bTV about the new methods of drug trafficking, changes in distribution channels and dangerous synthetic substances.
According to Bakalov, the use of underwater devices is not a new method. Trafficking with the so-called drug torpedoes have been used for decades, but this particular case is distinguished by the autonomous system.
„This type of trafficking is based on the principle of drug torpedoes, which have been used for more than 30 years. What is new in this case is that it is an unmanned autonomous system.“
He pointed out that this is probably the first such case established in our country. However, water and air drones are already a widespread practice in global drug trafficking.
„The use of water and air drones in the last few years has been a widespread practice in global drug trafficking.“
According to Bakalov, the global drug market is changing, moving from huge quantities to smaller shipments. Trafficking in large quantities of cocaine is decreasing, and drugs are increasingly being divided into shipments of 10-15 kilograms. Digital distribution channels are also developing.
Bulgaria continues to be a transit country. Among the main directions is the trafficking of large quantities of marijuana to Turkey, as well as precursors and cocaine through ports and land crossings.
Small shipments and e-commerce are increasingly used for the domestic market.
„Mostly synthetic cannabinoids, synthetic opioids and the latest negative trends in drug use, such as fentanyl, its analogues and the now stronger nitazenes.“
Among the most worrying trends are the new synthetic opioids.
„Yes, nitazenes and orphines are more than 100 times more potent than fentanyl.“
Bakalov specified that so far these substances have not entered the Bulgarian market en masse, but the institutions are monitoring the trends. The danger is also in mixing them with other drugs, without the users knowing.
„It is enough to have one gram to make several thousand doses, which is a pretty good incentive for the drug traffickers themselves.“
In parallel with traditional methods, digital channels are also developing.
„For 2-3 years now, the methods of trafficking, the use of chatbots with various Telegram applications, have been circulating in the media space.“
In these schemes, the contact between the participants in the chain is minimal, which makes investigations difficult.