Royal Institute for Traditional Arts launches training on Al-Qatt Al-Asiri art    Nearly 2 million worshippers prayed in Rawdah at Prophet's Mosque during Hajj 1446    Saudi Arabia expands tech talent schools to five regions for 2025    Aubameyang exits Al Qadsiah as club turns to youth with Retegui signing    France withdraws troops from Senegal, ending military presence in West Africa    Germany's Merz and UK's Starmer sign 'first of its kind' defense and migration treaty    Norway leads Europe's best airports list    Syrian forces leave Sweida after ceasefire with Druze militias goes into effect    Main stage at Belgium's Tomorrowland music festival completely destroyed by fire    Sports vehicles can have now short number plates    Saudi Arabia draw Iraq and Indonesia in 2026 World Cup Asian play-off group    Saudi conjoined twins Yara and Lara successfully separated in 12.5-hour surgery    Babies made using three people's DNA are born free of hereditary disease    'Art of the Kingdom' exhibition to open in Beijing's National Museum on July 30    Saudi minister holds strategic AI and tech talks with French institutions in Paris    ASICS and Saudi Sports for All launch startup pitch to boost sports innovation in Saudi Arabia    Youth-led Saudi businesses exceed 474K    Scientists recover proteins from a 24 million-year-old rhino fossil    Jorge Jesus returns to Saudi Arabia as Al Nassr head coach on one-year deal    Jannik Sinner beats Carlos Alcaraz to win his maiden Wimbledon title    Sholay: Bollywood epic roars back to big screen after 50 years with new ending    Ministry launches online booking for slaughterhouses on eve of Eid Al-Adha    Shah Rukh Khan makes Met Gala debut in Sabyasachi    Pakistani star's Bollywood return excites fans and riles far right    Exotic Taif Roses Simulation Performed at Taif Rose Festival    Asian shares mixed Tuesday    Weather Forecast for Tuesday    Saudi Tourism Authority Participates in Arabian Travel Market Exhibition in Dubai    Minister of Industry Announces 50 Investment Opportunities Worth over SAR 96 Billion in Machinery, Equipment Sector    HRH Crown Prince Offers Condolences to Crown Prince of Kuwait on Death of Sheikh Fawaz Salman Abdullah Al-Ali Al-Malek Al-Sabah    HRH Crown Prince Congratulates Santiago Peña on Winning Presidential Election in Paraguay    SDAIA Launches 1st Phase of 'Elevate Program' to Train 1,000 Women on Data, AI    41 Saudi Citizens and 171 Others from Brotherly and Friendly Countries Arrive in Saudi Arabia from Sudan    Saudi Arabia Hosts 1st Meeting of Arab Authorities Controlling Medicines    General Directorate of Narcotics Control Foils Attempt to Smuggle over 5 Million Amphetamine Pills    NAVI Javelins Crowned as Champions of Women's Counter-Strike: Global Offensive (CS:GO) Competitions    Saudi Karate Team Wins Four Medals in World Youth League Championship    Third Edition of FIFA Forward Program Kicks off in Riyadh    Evacuated from Sudan, 187 Nationals from Several Countries Arrive in Jeddah    SPA Documents Thajjud Prayer at Prophet's Mosque in Madinah    SFDA Recommends to Test Blood Sugar at Home Two or Three Hours after Meals    SFDA Offers Various Recommendations for Safe Food Frying    SFDA Provides Five Tips for Using Home Blood Pressure Monitor    SFDA: Instant Soup Contains Large Amounts of Salt    Mawani: New shipping service to connect Jubail Commercial Port to 11 global ports    Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques Delivers Speech to Pilgrims, Citizens, Residents and Muslims around the World    Sheikh Al-Issa in Arafah's Sermon: Allaah Blessed You by Making It Easy for You to Carry out This Obligation. Thus, Ensure Following the Guidance of Your Prophet    Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques addresses citizens and all Muslims on the occasion of the Holy month of Ramadan    







Thank you for reporting!
This image will be automatically disabled when it gets reported by several people.



23 tons of cocaine seized in Europe's biggest haul
Published in The Saudi Gazette on 24 - 02 - 2021

Authorities in Germany and Belgium seized more than 23,000 kilograms (50,700 pounds) of cocaine, worth billions of dollars, in an international operation that resulted in one arrest, officials said on Wednesday, calling it the largest amount of cocaine ever seized in Europe.
The operation lasted more than week and culminated in the arrest Wednesday of a 28-year-old man from Vlaardingden, the Netherlands, whose address was on the shipment, Dutch police said.
Working on a tip from colleagues in the Netherlands, customs officers in the German port city of Hamburg opened three containers listed as containing construction putty, German Customs Investigation head Rene Matschke told CNN. In the container testing facility, they found that the cans were loaded not only with putty but also with packages of cocaine.
Investigators found 16,174 kilograms (35,658 pounds) of cocaine, hidden in 1,728 cans of construction putty. The containers came on a ship from Paraguay, via Tangier and Rotterdam, the police said.
It was "pretty disgusting to separate the cocaine from the putty as it is so sticky," Matschke said, adding that the the drugs would have a street value of several billion euros.
The Dutch police said a "risk analysis" they carried out led German authorities to check the three containers on Feb. 12.
Dutch authorities said that following that seizure, they began an investigation into the recipient of the Hamburg shipment, which led them to 11 containers on their way from Panama to Antwerp, ostensibly filled with pineapple, mackerel, squid and wood.
Belgian authorities on Saturday found 7,200 kilograms (15,873 pounds) of cocaine in the container carrying blocks of wood, according to the Dutch police.
"The intercepted mega-shipments to the Netherlands together form an absolute record," the Dutch police said in a statement. "Never before has so much cocaine been intercepted at once."
Officials said it was not only the largest seizure of cocaine ever in Europe, but one of the largest single seizures worldwide.
Rolf Bösinger, State Secretary in Germany's Federal Ministry of Finance, praised the customs officers, saying: "We have succeeded in seizing a record amount of cocaine. With this blow against organized narcotics crime — also thanks to the exemplary cooperation with European partner authorities -- German Customs has once again impressively demonstrated its clout. Our strategy of continuing to massively strengthen customs is working."
Hamburg customs officers handle about eight million containers a year. — Courtesy CNN


Clic here to read the story from its source.