Maungdaw, Burma: The District police officer Aung Htay and Township Police officer (OC) Nyi Lwin Soe of Maungdaw Township have been in cahoots with drug dealers since the beginning of this year for their vested interests and not for government revenue, according to a trader from Maungdaw town.

In the last week of October 2008, Maung Daw District police officer Aung Htay gave 4 million kyat to the police sub-inspector Aung Khin Thein and a policeman keeping the Officer-in-Charge (OC) of Maungdaw police station in the know and asked them to pretend to be buyers to arrest the drug dealers.

According to the advice of their bosses, Aung Khin Thein and his colleagues pretended to be drug sellers and waited near a monastery near Myoma Kayindan village of Maungdaw Town. This monastery is called the Bangladesh monastery.

On the basis of information, Aung Khin Thein along with another policeman arrested a monk and a man from the monastery who came from Sittwe, the capital of Arakan State. They seized some Yaba tablets from them, said a shopkeeper of Maungdaw on condition of anonymity.

Aung Khin Thein, the sub-inspector demanded 4 million kyat from the arrested for their release. The district police officer and the OC asked the two arrestees not to talk to anybody and any department.

The District police department and Maungdaw police station were the only two departments who knew about the deal. So, the district police officer asked them to pay kyat 2 million for their release. Later, they were released after paying the money demanded to the officers.

The district police officer and the OC earned a lot of money by dealing with drug dealers, said an aide who is close to the two police officers.