DUSHANBE, Tajikistan (AP) — Border troops in Tajikistan say they have clashed with a gang of heroin traffickers attempting to smuggle drugs into the country from neighboring Afghanistan.
The State National Security Committee’s press office said Thursday that one of the traffickers was wounded in the battle and that the gang managed to escape back into Afghanistan.
Officials say more than 25 kilograms (55 pounds) of heroin and 1 kilogram (2.2 pounds) of cocaine were found at the site of the clash.
The incident took place Sunday, but officials in Tajikistan typically publicize such events several days after the fact.
The poverty stricken former Soviet republic struggles to police the long and porous border with Afghanistan, and incursions are commonplace.
