SOFIA, April 20 (Xinhua) -- Bulgarian law enforcement authorities have seized 402.72 kg of heroin at the country's Kapitan Andreevo checkpoint near the border with Türkiye, officials said on Saturday.

(File photo: AP)

The heroin, divided into 618 strip-shaped polyethylene bags, was discovered on Wednesday during an X-ray examination of a truck transporting mattresses for beds from Iran through Türkiye and Bulgaria to a European Union nation, according to the Prosecutor's Office.

Officials estimated the black market value of the heroin to exceed 9.11 million U.S. dollars.

The driver of the vehicle, a 63-year-old Turkish national, was apprehended at the scene.

Bulgaria's Caretaker Interior Minister Kalin Stoyanov told a press conference that there was no prior information from foreign partner services regarding this heroin shipment. Stoyanov added that law enforcement personnel operated based on risk analysis principles.

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