Pubdate: Fri, 24 Sep 1999
Source: Associated Press
Copyright: 1999 Associated Press

TURKISH COPS GRAB 365 LBS OF HEROIN

ISTANBUL, Turkey - A suspected drug smuggler committed suicide
by throwing himself out of the fifth-floor window of a police station
after police detained him and seized 365 pounds of heroin, a news
agency reported.

The man, who was detained along with two other suspects, died of his
injuries Thursday while being rushed to a hospital, Istanbul police
chief Hasan Ozdemir told the Anatolia news agency.

Officials of the narcotics squad said they had warned police that
Solmaz had psychological problems and might commit suicide, the news
agency reported.

Solmaz was suspected of organizing the transfer of the heroin -- which
was seized before his arrest in a truck in the outskirts of Istanbul
- -- from Iran to the Netherlands. The drugs had an estimated street
value of $1.1 million.

Turkey is a major transit point for drugs moving from Asia and the
Middle East to Europe and North America.
- ---
MAP posted-by: Derek Rea