TWO CROATIAN NATIONALS CAUGHT WHILE TRYING TO SMUGGLE HEROIN

( Editorial: --> 7404 ) ZAGREB, July 13 (Hina) - The Bulgarian border police on Sunday arrested two Croatian nationals, a man and a woman, while trying to smuggle 16.83 kg of heroin across the Bulgarian-Romanian border at the border crossing Vidin. The heroin, packaged in 33 parcels, was hidden in the back of a "Fiat Bravo" with Croatian registration plates, the Croatian Interior Ministry's public relations office said in a statement Monday. The arrested, aged 27 and 22, are from Porec and Sveti Lovrec. They are now in detention in Bulgaria. The Croatian and Bulgarian Interpol offices have established that a small portion of the drugs was to be smuggled to Croatia while the rest was to reach the western European market via the so-called Balkan route including Turkey, Albania, Macedonia, Bulgaria, Romania, Hungary and Croatia. (hina) rml, 131811 MET jul 98