Nuremberg, Germany, Jan 24 (CTK) – Bavarian and Czech police and customs officers seized over one kilogramme of pervitine (metamphetamine) in a joint raid in the borderland, representatives of the two countries’ law-enforcement bodies told journalists Thursday.

The German federal land Bavaria has faced a massive growth of import of the drug from the Czech Republic in recent years.

In 2012, Bavarian authorities seized 23 kilogrammes of it, six kilogrammes more than a year ago.

The raid dubbed Speedway II with a focus on drug smuggling took place between last July and December.

On the German part of the border, the police and customs officers detained 900 grammes of the drug and on the Czech 265 grammes.

The quantity is sufficient for roughly 40.000 consumers.

Along with pervitine, nicknamed crystal in Germany, the authorities seized in another raid of this type five kilogrammes of marihuana, half a kilogramme of hashish, 4200 piece of illegal pyrotechnics and a number of small arms.

Saxony, the other German land bordering on the Czech Republic, has faced the inflow of pervitine from it for roughly the last three years.

In 2009, the Bavarian authorities seized less than one kilogrammes of the drug, but the amount rose to 17 kilogrammes two years later.

Last year, Bavarian politicians criticised Czech authorities for a too liberal policy due to which the drugs can easily be smuggled to Germany.

Since 2010, the possession of a small quantity of drugs for personal needs has only been considered a minor offence in the Czech Republic. This encouraged its manufacturers, primarily from the Vietnamese community in the Czech Republic, the German authorities say.

German drug consumers and dealers then learnt to acquire the drug in the Czech borderland where it is up for sale at Asian markets at a much cheaper price than in Germany.