Dundo - A 34-year-old man from Côte d'Ivoire has been arrested in the mining village of Calonda, eastern Lunda Norte province, for allegedly trafficking 18 portions of cocaine, the spokesperson of the Criminal Investigation Service (SIC) Graciano Lumanhi said Monday.

The SIC spokesperson said the seizure of the drugs and the arrest of the suspect were the result of a criminal intelligence work and a search warrant issued by the Public Prosecutor's Office, after strong evidence of drug possession had been spotted.

Lumanhi added that the SIC discovered that most of the drug customers are foreign citizens living in Angola.

The source said that the alleged drug trafficker buys it in Luanda, further selling it at 4,500 kwanzas each portion, with the help of a 39-year-old Angolan citizen, his girlfriend, who was also arrested.

This is the first seizure of hard drugs in Lunda Norte province this year. HD/AMP