It arrived by sea, was seized in a major maritime operation and has now gone up in flames , more than Sh8.2 billion worth of methamphetamine destroyed under the watch of the courts.
The 1,036.044 kilogramme haul was transported from the Kenya Navy Base in Mtongwe, Likoni, under tight security by a multi-agency team before being taken to Bamburi Cement for destruction. The drugs had been recovered from a stateless vessel intercepted in the Indian Ocean in October 2025, approximately 630 kilometres east of Mombasa.
The consignment comprised 769 packages of a crystalline substance that was later confirmed through forensic analysis to be methamphetamine. The drugs were counted, tested and weighed as part of a court-supervised process to verify their identity and quantity before destruction. The exercise was conducted in the presence of the six Iranian nationals facing trafficking charges over the shipment.
The maritime operation involved the Kenya Navy and other Kenyan security agencies, with regional and international partners also providing intelligence and operational support. The vessel was intercepted during an operation linked to the wider fight against transnational narcotics trafficking in the Western Indian Ocean.
The six suspects remain before the Shanzu Law Courts in connection with the alleged trafficking of the drugs. The physical narcotics have now been destroyed, but the criminal proceedings against the accused continue.
The government has maintained that the destruction is part of a wider crackdown on drug trafficking and says security agencies will continue pursuing those involved in the illegal narcotics trade.
