Record 9.5 tonnes of cocaine seized in Spanish port

Spanish police and customs officials said on Friday that it was the “largest hidden cocaine shipment to date” ever seized in Spain. The drugs from Ecuador were discovered on Wednesday in the port of the southern Spanish city of Algeciras in a refrigerated container with banana crates.

In their joint statement, customs and police spoke of an “unprecedented strike against one of the world’s largest criminal organizations involved in cocaine distribution”. However, it remains unclear which organization it was. The most important criminal networks in Europe were therefore intended as recipients: the logos of more than 30 European criminal groups were found in the charge, the statement said.

Drugs are often smuggled in fruit shipments. Along with Belgium and the Netherlands, Spain is one of the largest hubs for smuggling cocaine from South America. In July, the Dutch authorities seized more than eight tons of cocaine in the port of Rotterdam – they were also hidden in a banana container from Ecuador.