30 detained in Vietnam drug haul

30 detained in Vietnam drug haul

HANOI (AP): Police said on Tuesday they have detained 30 people, including police and government employees, for alleged involvement in Vietnam's biggest drug-trafficking ring.

One man confessed he had smuggled 272.3 kilograms of heroin and more than a ton of opium into the country between 1994 until his arrest, said a police officer from the Ministry of Public Security's Drug Control Department.

The first arrests in the latest case came last September, and the most recent was made on Aug. 20. Police have seized $441,000, 80 million dong ($5,700) and a substantial amount of gold.

The officer said police are investigating 80 other people suspected of involvement in the ring, which has been operating in 14 of Vietnam's 61 provinces and major cities.