published 2. June 2022, 20:36
During a routine inspection of a Brazilian bulk carrier, French customs divers found 124 kilograms of cocaine. The drugs were hidden in a depression twelve meters below the surface of the water.
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Great Sea freighter, which was supposed to unload its cargo in La Rochelle, …
douane.gouv.fr
… Has been carefully inspected by the customs authorities. Divers found …
douane.gouv.fr
… 124 kilos of cocaine hidden in the niche.
douane.gouv.fr
French customs divers discovered 124 kilograms of cocaine hidden in a cavity under the hull of a cargo ship from Brazil. The ship, under the flag of Liberia, the Great Sea, was scheduled to unload the pulp at the port of La Rochelle in southwestern France when customs officials arrived for inspection, the agency said on Thursday. A team of three customs divers examined the ship’s hull underwater.
At a depth of twelve meters, the divers discovered an unusual strip protruding from a grate in the recess for sucking in cooling water, the so-called sea chest. While illuminating the cave, they recognized the waterproof bags hidden there. In the case of three divers, the drug bags were recovered in several dives. The value of the smuggled goods, 124.8 kg of cocaine, has been reported at around € 7.5 million. The Chinese captain and the 23-strong crew were arrested.
In 2021, French customs confiscated 18.62 tonnes of cocaine, more than twice as much as the year before.
(trx)