CRIME
UK Police Seize Record 12,500 Pounds Of Cocaine In Banana Shipment From South America
The U.K.'s National Crime Agency and Border Force
U.K. police on Friday announced the record-breaking seizure of 5.7 metric tons of cocaine, or about 12,500 pounds, found inside a shipment of bananas from South America.
The U.K.’s National Crime Agency and Border Force said the cocaine was found in a container at Southampton Port on Feb. 8 when specialist border officers were called to inspect the shipment after the NCA flagged it through its Near Europe Task Force.
The blocks of cocaine were hidden inside a cargo of bananas from South America that was en route to the Port of Hamburg in Germany for onward delivery. The NCA said it is working with European partners to identify the criminal networks involved in the shipment.
The agency said that based on U.K. street prices, the haul of cocaine has an estimated value of around $570.8 million. According to the NCA, the U.K. cocaine market is dominated by criminal gangs believed to be making more than $5 billion per year in the country alone.
Authorities said the largest such seizure previously was around 8,100 pounds of cocaine, intercepted in Southampton in 2022.
“This record-breaking seizure will represent a huge hit to the international organized crime cartels involved, denying them massive profits. The work of the NCA was crucial to making it happen, NCA Director Chris Farrimond said in a statement.
“While the destination for the consignment was continental Europe in this case, I have no doubt that a significant proportion would have ended up back here in the U.K., being peddled by U.K. criminal gangs, Farrimond said.
“The NCA is targeting international networks upstream and overseas, disrupting and dismantling them at every step. International law enforcement co-operation is essential to this mission, he said.
“This government takes a zero-tolerance approach to the supply of illegal drugs, and I am grateful to dedicated Border Force officers and the NCA for their work to apprehend this record-breaking seizure, said Minister for Legal Migration and the Border, Tom Pursglove MP. “This seizure sends a clear message to criminals that they will be caught. Our Border Force officers continue to work relentlessly to protect our borders and ensure the safety and security of the public.”
TMX contributed to this article.
