Turkish police seized some 127 kilograms of heroin yesterday in two separate operations in the eastern province of Van.

Anti-drug police stopped a suspected minibus in the Edremit district of Van province, the local police department said in a statement. During the search, police found 75.6 kilograms of heroin in 145 packages hidden in the minibus and the driver was held. In another operation, gendarmerie forces followed a car due to breaking a stop sign in the province's Başkale district.

Later, 51.5 kilograms of heroin were seized by forces in an abandoned automobile. According to police data, Turkish security forces seized a total of 17.3 tons of heroin in 2018 and arrested more than 1,500 suspects.