A United Nations driver in the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo is suspected of trying to smuggle minerals out of the country.

Officials in Congo's North Kivu province say the driver was stopped Sunday evening near the border with Rwanda. They say he was driving a vehicle carrying 1,200 kilograms of cassiterite, the principle ore of tin.

The suspect is an employee of the U.N. peacekeeping mission in Congo.

The rich mines of eastern Congo have fueled conflict in the area for years. The United Nations has said most mining sites there are run by militia and rebel groups that battle the government and each other.

The government has struggled to seize full control of eastern Congo, nearly a decade after the end of the country's civil war.