Officials in the Dominican Republic have announced that the cocaine found in the nation’s largest seizure to date was destined for Europe.
Authorities discovered 9,500kg of illicit drugs concealed within a shipment of bananas at a port in Santo Domingo, the capital. Authorities discovered cocaine concealed within 320 bags, with an estimated street value reaching $250 million (£196 million).
Authorities are investigating at least 10 individuals associated with the port, with preliminary findings indicating that the bananas originated from Guatemala, as reported by the National Drug Control Directorate.
According to communications chief Carlos Danvers, “Many unknown individuals attempted to transfer the drugs to another container intended for shipment on a vessel to Belgium.”
The recent seizure significantly surpasses the 2,580kg confiscation carried out by Dominican authorities at the same port in 2006.
Recent reports from monitoring agencies indicate that the Caribbean is reemerging as a significant drug trafficking corridor connecting Colombia to Europe.
According to a report released last year, there has been a notable rise in cocaine use across various Western European nations, including the UK, Belgium, France, and Spain.
A United Nations report reveals that in 2020, Europe represented 21% of the global cocaine user population.
Recent evidence indicates that the use of the drug is leading to severe health repercussions, as new data reveals that drug-poisoning deaths in England and Wales have reached their highest level in three decades, driven by a significant increase in fatalities associated with cocaine.
