Authorities at the port of Brest in France seized 178 kilograms of cocaine on Thursday. The drugs were found hidden in a cargo ship that had arrived several hours prior from Brazil, the Atlantic Maritime Prefecture announced on 16 February.
The cocaine was discovered “packaged in bundles and hidden in the hull of the ship”, according to a press release. The freighter, the Nord Capella, which flies the flag of Panama and measures 230 metres long, was carrying 15,000 tonnes of soybeans.
“Shortly after docking, the ship was checked by the Atlantic Maritime Security Platoon and a team from the Coast Guard Customs patrol boat Kermorvan,” the statement said. Investigators, divers, and a canine team were used to locate the hidden drugs.
An investigation is now underway by the maritime police and local officers to investigate the trans-Atlantic cocaine smuggling.
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Just last week, early on Friday, more than 180 kg of cocaine was found hidden in the hull of a cargo ship, again from Brazil, by the Lorient coast guard. Drugs were hidden in the same way as on the Nord Capella, hidden in the hull’s “sea chest.”
