The smuggling attempt was detected by Beirut airport officials. The airport authority uncovered a record haul of two tons of the amphetamine Captagon (generic name phenethylline) pills. The pills were being loaded onto the private plane of a Saudi Arabian prince. The drugs were distributed between 32 packages and eight suitcases and the private plane was to head to Hail in northern Saudi Arabia .The prince has been named as Prince Abdel Mohsen Bin Walid Bin Abdulaziz.
The smuggling attempt was said to be Lebanon’s largest drug smuggling plot. As a result of the discovery the prince and four of his entourage have been detained. Among the pills packets of cocaine were also found.
Illegal Captagon manufacturing is big business Lebanon, as well as across Syria. The drug is commonly given out by militant groups to soldiers in order to boost their performance in conflict situations. Both regions are increasingly seen as easy gateways for the drug to be smuggled into the Middle East. According to The Guardian, trade in the drug generated revenues of millions of dollars inside the Syria during 2014. They typical price per tablet is $20, although the cost of producing a tablet is around 1 cent.
Captagon is a psychostimulant, a type of psychoactive drug that induces temporary improvements in either mental or physical functions. The drug was created in 1961 in order to treat hyperactivity, narcolepsy and depression. Although the substance was considered milder and possessing fewer side effects than other amphetamines, it was rendered illegal in the U.S. in 1981 (and subsequently in most other countries worldwide.)
The U.N. Office of Drugs and Crime indicates that Saudi Arabia, Jordan and Syria account for more than 55 percent of amphetamines seized worldwide. The report states: “Turkey is believed to be mainly a transit country for Captagon, and a gateway for illicit trafficking from South-East Europe to the Middle East.”
