Prague, June 24 (CTK) – Czech police seized a record 107 kg of hard drug pervitin (methamphetamine) in 2015, the highest volume in history and more than twice as much compared with the pervitin seizures in 2014, according to the National Anti-Drug Squad’s annual report released to CTK.
The volume of seized marijuana and cocaine rose as well, to 655 kg and 120 kg, respectively.
The total value of the drugs seized in 2015 was more than 256 million crowns.
The report says the biggest problem is the rising demand for pervitin, mainly in the neighbouring countries.
“The mass demand of clients from the Federal Republic of Germany continues to intensify, and the situation is becoming similar in the neighbouring Austria and the border areas of Poland and Slovakia,” the report says.
Clients’ demand boosts the trend of rising pervitin production and quick sale. The drug’s price increases four times when sold in Germany, and even eight times when sold in Nordic countries, the report says.
Large-scale pervitin production has been dominated by Vietnamese criminal gangs for several years. Their main aim is to illegally export the drug from the Czech Republic.
“Their operations include a high level of conspiracy and division of tasks. The capacity of drug production facilities has been continuously rising,” the report says.
The pervitin production has also become more mobile. In 2015, the police registered the trend of the perpetrators often changing the places of production. They have also moved part of the production to Poland in order to reduce the risk of being uncovered.
Pervitin production facilities are most often located in border areas. Last year, the police uncovered 263 of them, eight fewer than in 2014.
Czech pervitin has been mostly made of freely accessible medicines imported from abroad, often from Turkey via Bulgaria and Poland, according to the report.
In the Czech Republic, marijuana remains the most popular drug, the report continues.
In 2015, the police uncovered 220 cannabis-growing facilities, which is a decline by 81 against 2014. There were over 30,000 plants in these facilities.
The report says the growers newly tend to operate more smaller facilities instead of fewer large-scale ones known from the past.
Czech marijuana is mainly designated for the domestic market but has also been exported to the neighbouring countries, Ukraine, Hungary, Britain and north Europe.
Like in previous years, cocaine, with its higher price, remained a drug for well-off clients in 2015. Its quality was low as a result of dilution.
In 2015, the Czech police seized 115 kg more cocaine than in 2014. Some big shipments reached the Czech Republic only due to the smugglers’ logistic mistakes.
“When it comes to cocaine, the Czech Republic is not a significant country of either transit or destination,” the report says.
