Authorities are investigating the possible involvement of four busted drugs networks in financing terrorism, a source in the General Directorate of Drugs Control disclosed here on Monday. More than 1.76 ton of hashish and 3.4 million capsules of a popular recreational drug were seized and 35 smugglers in four drug networks arrested, the Interior Ministry announced on Sunday. Investigations have showed that the smugglers came from regional countries hosting dangerous criminal cells including Al-Qaeda and some militants on the Interior Ministry's list of 85 most-wanted terror suspects. Brigadier Ahmad Sa'eed Al-Zahrani, Assistant General Director of Drugs Control, said the four drug networks were busted in Dammam, Riyadh, Ahsa and Jeddah. Authorities were successful in smashing the networks after eight months of monitoring and surveillance, he said, explaining that all the seized drugs were smuggled to the Kingdom through its land borders. Authorities, including some at the international levels, are trying to find out any connection between these drug networks and terrorism since seized documents also showed financial transactions worth SR406 million ($108 million),” said Al-Zahrani. He also pointed out that most of the money transactions were found to be in Arab countries and some of them were deposited in local banks. Besides SR880,000 were found in cash in one of the network's hideout, he said. Those arrested, he said, will be referred to Shariah Court after investigations are completed.
