Recently, in Qingdao Customs District, totally 26.7 kilograms of khat, a new type of drug, were seized by way of mail control.

On March 18, the Customs-stationed Post Office targeted an inbound parcel declared as tea, finding it abnormal in image by X-ray machine, then unpacked it and discovered three bags of dehydrated plant leaves totaling 8.62kg, which were identified as khat drug afterwards. On April 1, the Customs seized 18.08kg khat leaves in a similar parcel once more. Subsequently, anti-smuggling officers captured two recipients of the parcels respectively in Qingdao and Weihai, the two suspects confessed to their smuggling acts.

On April 5, the two khat smuggling cases were formally put into criminal investigation, which is underway now.

The seized khat, a new type of drug

Customs officers were showing the khat leaves steeped in water.