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A leaked customs document has blown the lid off the infamous ice container scandal, exposing ship details, companies, and a Moratuwa-based importer tied to the deadly consignment.
The unfolding ice container scandal has taken a dramatic turn after a leaked Sri Lanka Customs document surfaced on social media, revealing explosive details about the shipment that allegedly brought in chemicals used to manufacture the deadly drug crystal meth (ice).
According to the document, the controversial cargo was shipped from Bandar Abbas Port in Iran on December 20, 2024, aboard the vessel XIN HANG ZHOU, and reached Sri Lanka earlier this year. The declared importer is a company located in Koralawella, Moratuwa, while the exporter is identified as Afshan Tarabar Barsava Co., an Iranian firm based in Tehran.
The manifest shows the consignment contained two declared items: 37,500 kilograms of semi-processed talc stones packed in 30 bags, and 11,500 kilograms of talc stone powder in 10 bags. Together, they weighed nearly 50,000 kilograms, eerily matching the earlier revelations about chemical stockpiles discovered in Middeniya, suspected to be linked to meth production.
Customs records indicate a total declared value of Rs. 525,268 and a duty of Rs. 522,718 paid for the import, with cash listed as the payment method. The talc shipment was divided into two containers—MSKU3648292 and TCLU7497670—raising questions about how such a large volume passed through inspections with little scrutiny.
While the official declaration categorises the goods under HS Code 25261000 (semi-processed talc stones) and HS Code 25262000 (talc stone powder), investigators now suspect that the consignments may have been a cover for the transport of precursor chemicals essential for the production of methamphetamine (ice).
Law enforcement agencies are under increasing pressure as this revelation links the supply chain directly from Iran to Sri Lanka, involving shipping companies, an importer in Moratuwa, and possible gaps in customs enforcement. The fact that the suspicious consignment left port at a time of serious container congestion in January 2025 raises further concerns about oversight failures.
This bombshell disclosure has intensified public outrage, with calls for accountability from Sri Lanka Customs, law enforcement, and government officials who may have facilitated or overlooked the transaction. As the scandal deepens, the trail of paperwork may finally expose the hidden network behind the country’s largest ever ice drug bust.
All due to curpted politicians
We have heard that the most of the problematic containers are coming through the red channel and easily get escaped.