This photograph taken on May 2, 2023 at the Policia Judiciaria - PJ (Criminal Police) headquarters in Lisbon shows Criminal Police officers handling cocaine bricks (4,2 tonnes), seized by Portuguese authorities hidden in banana commercial boxes from Latin America, in the last weeks during an investigation. (Photo by PATRICIA DE MELO MOREIRA / AFP)
Portuguese authorities have seized 4.2 tonnes of cocaine packed among bananas on a cargo ship destined for several European countries, according to reports from law enforcement officials today.
The cocaine entered Portuguese territory on board an Italian-flagged ship in the port of Setubal, located 30 kilometres south of Lisbon.
The “highly pure” cocaine has an estimated value of more than 100 million euros ($109 million), according to Vitor Ananias, a coordinator for the Portuguese judicial police.
He added that It is “one of the most important cocaine seizures this year”, and will result in “severe financial damage to the criminal trafficking organisations involved”.
The operation, which resulted from international cooperation with Colombia and several European countries, has so far led to no arrests.
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