TOKYO, Nov. 9 (Xinhua) -- Six people were arrested on suspicion of possessing a record quantity of what the health ministry has described as "dangerous drugs" with a similar composition to banned narcotic substances, anti-drug authorities said Thursday.
According to the health ministry's anti-drug officials, 20 kg of the drugs, comprising herbs and chemicals, were found in a house belonging to a 50-year-old man in Kawasaki city, south of Tokyo, in September.
Anti-drug enforcement officers in a subsequent search of the house also uncovered 180 kg of the drugs, which included other ingredients such as powder, along with 1.6 tons of herbs, in the largest-ever seizure of such dangerous drugs.
According to Japan's public broadcaster NHK, the street value of the drugs is estimated to be over 3 billion yen (in excess of 26.36 million U.S. dollars).
The officers also uncovered equipment likely used to produce or mix the drugs including centrifuges, NHK reported.
Of the six that were arrested, 50-year-old Manabu Iwamura has admitted the charges and was quoted as saying that he began the illicit business three years ago and over the past two years had been netting a monthly revenue of 180,000 U.S. dollars.
In total, the suspects are believed to have sold 9 million U.S. dollars-worth of the drugs through online sales, with investigators currently trying to determine more information about the sizable operation.
