Burkinabe customs officers operating along the strategic Cinkassé–Ouagadougou trade corridor have intercepted a major contraband shipment containing more than 1.31 million unauthorized medical tablets and 20,400 cans of alcoholic beverages, Director-General of Customs Yves Kafando announced in Ouagadougou.
Presented to the press following the seizure, the illicit merchandise was fraudulently concealed within commercial freight trucks transporting industrial clinker in an attempt to evade border inspections and national import regulations.
Addressing the media, Kafando warned that the seized pharmaceuticals lacked legal market authorization and posed a direct threat to public health across the country. Additionally, authorities emphasized that the smuggled alcoholic beverages, which included brands such as Vody and Desperados, were intentionally routed to bypass mandatory levies intended for the Patriotic Support Fund (FSP), a vital revenue mechanism used to finance national security operations. Denouncing persistent trafficking schemes that undermine state resources and endanger public safety, the customs chief urged logistics operators to adhere strictly to legal freight protocols and disclosed that comprehensive results from Operation Magna—a targeted sweep aimed at dismantling illicit trade networks—would be released shortly.
HO/te/Sf/lb/abj/APA