The navy found 12 shipping containers full of the
precursor chemical in the Pacific coast port of Lazaro Cardenas.
They said the chemical had been shipped from China and
was destined for Guatemala and Nicaragua.
The authorities said that Mexican drug cartels have
been expanding their methamphetamine operations to Guatemala.
Mexican officials said the chemical, methylamine,
could be used to make the synthetic drug methamphetamine, and also to produce
cocaine.
Growing demand
Over the past six weeks, the Mexican security forces
have seized nearly 900 tonnes of precursor chemicals, almost all of them bound
for Guatemala.
Estimates by the security forces in the United States
indicate that Mexico has in the past been the main supplier of meth used in the
US, but recent seizures of precursor chemicals suggest Guatemala may be
producing more.
A 2011 report by the United Nations Office on Drugs
and Crime said amphetamine-type stimulants had become the second most widely
used illegal substances.
According to the report, the main producers of
synthetic drugs remain the Netherlands and Burma, but manufacture has spread to
Latin America.
Nenhum comentário:
Postar um comentário