Interpol seizure uncovers enough fentanyl to kill 151 million people
An international operation coordinated by Interpol has led to one of the world’s largest synthetic drug seizures, uncovering enough fentanyl to potentially kill 151 million people.
Authorities across 18 countries in Asia and North America intercepted 76 tonnes of narcotics during the two-week campaign, valued at USD$6.5 billion at wholesale prices.
Among the haul were 51 tonnes of methamphetamine, including a record 297 million meth pills (known as yaba), along with heroin, cocaine, fentanyl, and chemical precursors used in drug manufacturing.
Operation Lionfish-Mayag III
Codenamed Operation Lionfish-Mayag III, the crackdown ran from 30 June to 13 July. Its coordination hub was based in Colombo, Sri Lanka, where specialised officers worked in real time with international partners to target the manufacturing, trafficking, and smuggling of synthetic drugs.
Authorities also dismantled a major Darknet syndicate in India known as Ketamelon, seizing LSD blots, ketamine, and digital assets worth USD 87,000. Investigators said the group was responsible for over 600 shipments in just 14 months.
In Myanmar, police intercepted two vehicles, one hiding 22 kg of heroin behind pineapples and another carrying 5.25 million yaba pills. A follow-up house raid uncovered an additional 4 million pills. Meanwhile, in the Lao PDR, officers seized 3.9 tonnes of methamphetamine and 10 production machines, arresting two suspects.
In Mexico, authorities confiscated more than 190,000 fentanyl tablets and 1.7 tonnes of methamphetamine, while also requesting an urgent Interpol Purple Notice to warn member states about new fentanyl precursors that criminals are using to bypass existing regulations.
Interpol Secretary General Valdecy Urquiza warned that the volume of seizures underscores the danger synthetic drugs pose, “The drugs trafficked by transnational criminal networks fuel violence, cripple economies and endanger public health. Each successful seizure highlights the power of law enforcement working together to protect lives and dismantle these threats.”
The operation resulted in 386 arrests, including a man under an Interpol Red Notice suspected of running a large-scale meth smuggling ring into Incheon National Airport. He was arrested in Cambodia and is awaiting extradition to South Korea.
This story is written and edited by the Global South World team, you can contact us here.
