Dutch national arrested for attempting to smuggle 12 kilos of miraa to Denmark at Mombasa airport

A Dutch national was Tuesday arrested for trying to smuggle 12 kilos of miraa (Khat) to Copenhagen, Denmark.

The man was arrested at the Moi International Airport in Mombasa as he boarded an Ethiopian airline headed for Copenhagen, officials said.

He had stuffed about 12 kilos of the drug in his two bags when it was detected by officials screening them.

He was informed it is criminal to export the drugs deemed contraband goods.

Police said he was detained pending arraignment.

On August 8, another Dutch man had been arrested at the airport while trying to smuggle out 10 kilos of miraa to Norway. He was also boarding an Ethiopian airline when he was intercepted on august 8, 2025.

Police say they had intensified screening at the airport to detect the attempt to export the drug.

The screening at the airports has been upgraded to detect any such drug being exported. This is because if and when detected in the intended destination, Kenya is blamed for the same.

Officials say most of the smugglers are avoiding Nairobi and are increasingly attempting the Mombasa route hence the attention being shifted there.

Just like Muguka, miraa is a stimulant drug, which means it speeds up the messages between the brain and the body

It is banned in many countries including the EU, Canada, Britain and USA.

Equally in Australia, the importation of khat is controlled under the Customs (Prohibited Imports) Regulations 1956. It is illegal to import khat into Australia for personal use. Khat can be imported only for medical or scientific use.

The same scenario applies in most countries in Asia. This has negatively impacted on many farmers who have been depending on the product.

There is a campaign to discourage the farmers from relying on the products and diversify to other areas.