The three men detained in connection with the recent cocaine haul have been handed over to Detective Branch of police for further investigation.
Zakir Hossain, deputy director at the Directorate of Customs Intelligence and Investigation, said a Customs team questioned the three men before handing them over to the custody of DMP detectives – who would now transfer them to the CMP Detective Branch.
Among the three arrestees, Golam Mostafa and Atiqur Rahman Khan – both relatives of a UK- based Bangladeshi suspect – were detained on Tuesday morning; while AKM Azad, manager of the shipping company concerned, was also held later that same day. They were all shown arrested in connection with the recent cocaine bust.
Asked about the visit of a team of UNODC to measure the quantity and quality of cocaine, Customs official Zakir said he did not have any information on the matter.
Meanwhile, SM Tanvir Arafat, additional deputy commissioner of Chittagong Metropolitan Police DB, said the detainees are expected to arrive in the port city by Wednesday midnight.
After taking them into custody, the police would plan the next course of action, he added.
On June 27, after conducting two lab tests, the customs intelligence announced there was presence of cocaine inside drums full of imported sunflower oil.
The discovery raised a lot of eyebrows as previous tests by the Narcotics Control Department earlier in June, had failed to find traces of cocaine in the same drums.