Major cocaine trafficking in the region of Bajo Cauca, Antioquia and the Gulf of Uraba dismantled

Bogota D. C. Four subjects from the criminal organization "The urabeños" were responsible for the shipment of cocaine to Europe.

The National Police through the Anti-Narcotics Directorate dedicated network dismantled a major cocaine trafficking in the region of Bajo Cauca, Antioquia and the Gulf of Uraba.

Among those captured is alias "El Zarco", member of the criminal organization "The urabeños" responsible for controlling the output of drug through the port of Turbo abroad, collecting taxes and authorizing the possible shipment of hallucinogenic substances to motorboats deep-reaching Urabá.

Investigations were being developed since last April 2009 in coordination with the Office of the United States Drug Enforcement Administration and the Attorney General's Office, which allowed inter also establish that the pattern of this organization was to ship through contamination of containers with bananas that are exported to Europe, for which contacts to officials involved in legal exports of companies in the region, who also supplied inside information about the traceability of the container selected for the illegal shipment of hallucinogenic the route of the motor boats that reached the Gulf to carry the load.

Another method used by these criminals, was the use of artisanal vessels carrying the hallucinogen to reach the deep-sea motor boats transiting the Atlantic Ocean to Europe. In the development of the operation of this organization, we seized over 600 kilos of cocaine which were destined for European markets.

Those captured were identified as, alias "El Zarco" member of the criminal gang called "The urabeños" responsible for monitoring and drug delivery through the port of Turbo abroad, collecting taxes and authorizing the possible shipment of hallucinogenic substances to deep-sea motor boats arriving in the Gulf of Uraba.

Another is caught alias "Elio" coordinator of shipments, bribing officials contacted and involved in legal exports of companies incorporated in the region.

He was also captured alias "Marble" charged with providing information to the organization of traceability of the containers selected for the illegal shipment of illegal drugs and the route of the motor boats that reached the Gulf to carry the load.

Finally alias "Gollo" owner of artisanal fishing boats, which used to coordinate the transport of alkaloids.

Navy intercept £4m cocaine haul

Published Date: 30 August 2010
PORTSMOUTH-based HMS Gloucester has helped capture £4m worth of cocaine – hidden in a yacht's rudder.
The ship intercepted the suspect yacht Tortuga in the mid-Atlantic.

The vessel – registered in Florida – was then taken to Cape Verde, off the western coast of Africa, where cocaine with a street value of £4m was found hidden within the rudder.

The Royal Navy was asked for help from Cape Verde authorities in tracking down the yacht.

HMS Gloucester – en route to the Falklands where she will spend the next seven months – was then diverted to intercept.

HMS Gloucester's Commanding Officer, Commander David George, said the yacht had nowhere to run.

He said: 'The last thing a drug smuggler wants to be seeing as the sun comes up is a Royal Navy warship bearing down on him.
'He can't run and he can't fight.

'HMS Gloucester provided the ideal launching pad for the Cape Verde law enforcement team to intercept these drugs.

'It's fast, has long-range detection radar, and one of the fastest helicopters in the world, the Lynx Mk 8.

'There was no argument.

'Thanks to close co-operation between the Cape Verde authorities, international counter-narcotics agencies and the Royal Navy, millions of pounds' worth of cocaine has been stopped from reaching our streets.'

The operation, which took place in the early hours of Friday last week, is the first one of its kind between the UK and Cape Verde authorities.

But it comes after efforts by the Royal Navy and Serious Organised Crime Agency to increase counter narcotics missions in the area.

Defence Secretary Dr Liam Fox said: 'This is another example of the great work the men and women of the Royal Navy carry out around the which helps protect us at home.

'The Royal Navy plays a crucial role in intercepting drugs that could be destined for Britain's streets.

'I am very proud of their efforts.'

It was an eventful start to Gloucester's latest deployment.

The Type 42 destroyer and her company of 280 men and women only left Portsmouth on August 20.

It will now spend the next seven months protecting British interests around the Falkland Islands and South Georgia.

It will also be making official visits to South American countries such as Brazil and Chile.

HMS Gloucester will be taking over patrols of the south Atlantic area from Devonport-based HMS Portland.
http://www.portsmouth.co.uk/newshome/Navy-intercept-4m-cocaine-haul.6502481.jp

Garda drug seizure nets 270kg of cannabis worth €2m

The Irish Times - Friday, August 27, 2010
THE GARDA have made the biggest cannabis seizure so far this year following an intelligence-led operation into a major organised crime gang that has been smuggling large shipments from Europe.

Detectives believe three men arrested as part of the seizure in Dublin were not big players in the gang which owned the drugs. An investigation into the key players was continuing last night.

The Irish Times understands the drugs seized, some 270kgs of cannabis resin with a street value of about €2 million, had been brought into the country by a syndicate of west Dublin dealers, most of them based in the Ballyfermot area of the city.

One senior Garda source said the well-known gang, led by two brothers, has been a key target for detectives in the city for many years. “They’ve been at it for a few years now, moving a lot of drugs around and while we’ve got some of them before, this seizure is definitely a big blow to them.”

The operation led by the Garda National Drugs Unit has been ongoing for a number of weeks. Officers from the specialist unit received intelligence suggesting some of the narcotics would be moving through Dublin city centre on Tuesday night.

Gardaí stopped a van on Arran Quay in Dublin’s south inner city on that night. An initial search of the van yielded nothing and the vehicle’s 60-year-old driver was not then arrested.

However, his van was taken away by officers and searched on Wednesday morning.

On examining headboards and other bed components in the van, the Garda search team realised the wooden parts had been hollowed out and blocks of cannabis wrapped in plastic and duct tape concealed inside.

Some 200kgs of the drug, with an estimated street value of €1.4 million, was found in the van.

Officers had kept the driver under surveillance overnight and he was arrested at the Bridewell Garda station in Dublin’s north inner city on Wednesday morning.

Gardaí believe the drugs in the van were part of a bigger haul that had just been shipped into the Republic.

A search operation was put into action throughout Wednesday which led gardaí to a warehouse and office building in the Greenogue Industrial Estate, Rathcoole, Co Dublin.

More hollowed-out wooden bed parts were found at the premises and a further stash of cannabis resin valued at more than €400,000 was discovered.

A 40-year-old man was arrested at the scene.

Yesterday morning a 23-year-old man was arrested in Dublin city centre. He was the passenger in the van stopped on Arran Quay on Tuesday night.

Two men are being held at the Bridewell Garda station while a third is being held in Clondalkin station. All are being detained under section 2 of the Drug Trafficking Act and can be held without charge for up to seven days.

Garda sources said the investigation was continuing and that more arrests were anticipated.

http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/ireland/2010/0827/1224277687615.html

A Dutchman arrested at Lima's international airport with 11.9 kilos of cocaine

A Dutchman who acted as 'mule' (e) of drug trafficking was arrested at Lima's international airport with 11.9 kilos of cocaine hidden in his luggage, valued at more than half a million dollars on the European black market, reported Saturday Peruvian police.

Alexander van Stralendorf, 48, traveled to Amsterdam and had hidden the drug in a double-bottomed suitcase, sprinkled with pepper and cinnamon to try to fool the load-sniffing dogs at the airport Jorge Chavez, Peru's main terminal.
Peruvian police said a kilo of cocaine sold in the European market to the equivalent of $ 50,000.
The Dutchman admitted that receive more than 5,000 euros in return for delivering cocaine to a contact in the capital of the Netherlands.

So far this year more than 340 'mules' of drug trafficking have been caught at the airport Jorge Chavez, who seized a total of over 2,000 kilos, an amount very similar to previous years.

http://www.lanacion.com.py/noticias_um-323596.htm

Police, Coast Guard seize 13,000 lbs of ganja in MoBay

Sunday, August 29, 2010




MONTEGO BAY, St James — A combined 13,000 pounds of compressed ganja was seized Friday and yesterday at the Montego Freeport harbour by the Marine Police in collaboration with the Jamaica Defence Force Coast Guard.

Police said a total of 800 pounds of the weed was found at about 5:00 am in four canisters during the search of the hull of a vessel docked in the port.


The ship, which the police said originated from Trinidad, arrived in the island on Friday, and was scheduled to leave for the Bahamas yesterday.

The seizure comes on the heels of the discovery of three canisters containing 500 pounds of weed, which were found afloat in the harbour during an operation early Friday.

"It was about 2:00 am that the team observed an unusual movement in the harbour and so the members decided to investigate," said a police source. "On investigation a man was seen on a bamboo raft in the water. When he was approached, he abandoned the raft and escaped."

The canisters were later found during the search of the area.

The police theorised that the man was transporting the canisters containing the drug to an area where they would be stored and later placed on a vessel.

"It was as a result of this discovery that the police and the coast guard decided to carry out a search of the ship," said the source.

No arrests have been made in connection with both seizures.

http://www.jamaicaobserver.com/news/Police--Coast-Guard-seize-13-000-lbs-of-ganja-in-MoBay_7913817

Major MoBay drug bust
Published: Sunday | August 29, 2010

Ganja with an estimated local street value of more than $40 million, but which could fetch much more on the streets of the United States, was seized by the police in Montego Bay, St James, yesterday and Friday.

The weed was attached to a cargo vessel, Odergas, which was also seized by the cops.

Initial reports from the Constabulary Communication Network (CCN) said the more than 860 pounds of ganja was found at the Montego Freeport Pier.

No arrests

The CCN says about 6:35 yesterday morning, personnel from the marine police and the coast guard found one canister with weed attached to the vessel which was from Trinidad and destined for The Bahamas.

The find came hours after the cops intercepted a man on a raft in the vicinity of the pier.

While the man was able to jump into the water and swim away, he left behind three metal canisters containing compressed ganja.

No one was arrested in connection with either seizure, but the police are following several leads.

http://www.jamaica-gleaner.com/gleaner/20100829/news/news3.html

Customs seizes ingredients enough for 2 tons of shabu

by Joel E. Zurbano

CUSTOMS agents intercepted in North Harbor, Manila a huge shipment of toluene, a regulated substance used in producing shabu, which was declared by the importer as ladies handbags from Shekou, China.

The contraband, according to Customs X-ray Inspection Project head Ma. Lourdes Mangaoang, was enough to produce two tons of shabu with an estimated street value of P1.5 billion.

Mangaoang the 6,400 liters of toluene loaded in a 40-foot container van was consigned to Trispher Trading and arrived at the Manila International Container Port last Aug. 10.

The firm has a business address at 27-D Sampaguita Granada Street , Barangay Valencia in Quezon City.

The importer was not registered with the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency and had not secured a license to import the substance, it was learned.

Mangaoang said the illegal substance was discovered at the MICP after her team. led by agent Robert Montealegre, found images of drums concealed by other items at the rear end of the container.

Customs Commissioner Angelito Alvarez commended the team of Mangaoang for the seizure of 32 drums of toluene, which is classified as a narcotic and a psychotropic substance under the United Nations Convention Against Illicit Traffic in Narcotic Drugs.

A psychotropic substance is a chemical that crosses the blood-brain barrier and acts primarily upon the central nervous system where it alters brain function, resulting in changes in perception, mood, consciousness, and behavior.

Alvarez told reporters it was the biggest toluene haul that was seized by the Customs authorities.

Alvarez tapped Enforcement and Security Service officer-in-charge Chief Supt. Jose Yuchongco to coordinate with PDEA for the proper custody, sampling, and secured laboratory testing of the confiscated toluene.

PDEA chemist Shiela Esguerra certified that the “32 drums were positive for toluene, an essential chemical under Republic Act 9165 or the Dangerous Drugs Act of 2002. Each drum contains 200 liters of toluene.”

Yuchongco said his men are now looking for the owners of Trispher Trading.

In 2007, the bureau’s x-ray inspection unit also seized a sizeable quantity of toluene enough to produce P700 million worth of shabu.

The shipment was found inside a 40-foot container van that came from Taiwan and was consigned to Vill-Gay Forwarding Services.

The drums of toluene were among the assorted plastic panelings, nylon cord, aluminum rod, aluminum rail bracket, magnetic clutch, lock screw, metal cans of thinners, and anti-rust solutions.

Customs officials said toluene importations should be covered by a permit from PDEA.
http://www.manilastandardtoday.com/insideMetro.htm?f=2010/august/26/metro1.isx&d=2010/august/26

5 tons hashish in Dutch sailboat

The Security Service arrangements (SVA) intervened in the early hours of Wednesday in waters of the Strait of Gibraltar, close to 5,000 kilograms of hashish hidden in a sailboat Netherlands flag. The SVA helicopter found the boat 10 miles from Punta Europa and raised the suspicions of the agents to take the engine off. The SVA sent to patrol the area to Eagle in April, based in Algeciras, in carrying out their inspection.

Once aboard the boat, 17 meters long, SVA agents proceeded to the registration of the boat, where they were located about 200 bales of hashish. In the absence of final weighing of the drug, it is estimated that the quantity of hashish seized five tonnes ronde. In addition, the three crew members were detained the boat, two of them French and the third Dutchman. Those arrested were brought to justice charged with a drug trafficking offense.

In the absence of official confirmation about the exact amount of drugs intercepted, the police operation would be the second largest amount that has developed in the province when it is summer.

Since June and until yesterday, the Security Forces of the State had seized more than 22.5 tons of hashish in the area. The most seized drug action was developed in the first half of July in the port of Algeciras and she also participated in the Tax Agency in collaboration with the National Police. At that time the agents found 11 100 kilograms of hashish were hidden in a shipment of frozen sardines arrived at the port, making a break economic fabric of an organization that laundered drug money through various companies.

50 kg of cocaine hidden in hi-fi systems, the drug would have earned more than 8 million

Rome, August 25 (AGI)
Fifty kilos of cocaine hidden in hi-fi clothing in suitcases transported between three Brazilian women, were seized at Fiumicino airport from the Provincial Command of the military police of Rome arrested the three "couriers" arriving from Sao Paulo and Milan final destination.

Cocaine seized from traffickers were obtained by adding substances to cut over 150 kg of drugs to sell, intended probably to supply the markets of central and northern Italy, with profits estimated at more than 8 million.

Two young mothers of Brazilian origin, with the result, respectively, a daughter and a baby barely eighteen, had thought of hiding from the many tourists passing by the Leonardo da Vinci Airport, in an attempt to overcome easily inspections and to remove Suspicion also counting on the presence of the son of one of two women, two and a half years.

Military Group Fiumicino, however, suspicious of the women had heavy suitcases loaded in the hold of the EAR, which were affixed on some previous trips Tag
played in Japan, decided to investigate the controls, stopping just as they were about to board the plane that was brought to Milan.

D.O.S., P.S. and FDB, 35, 23 and 18 years, the financiers of the first questions on the contents of their luggage, replied that in addition to other personal effects, there were gifts of modest value for families residing in Italy.

But control of the military has discovered that in each case, between different clothes, had hidden a hi-fi, complete with warranty and instruction booklet. Only the weight, however, was not consistent: in every stereo in fact had been concealed eight loaves of pure cocaine with a total of 50 pounds.

The three women, after the formalities of ritual, were conducted at the prison of Civitavecchia, available to the local judicial authorities and will respond to international traffic of drugs, while the child was entrusted to the Social Services of the same House district.

R1.4bn cocaine bust at harbour

Cocaine seized in Bay (including video, see the news from TheHerald)

2010/08/25



POLICE this afternoon found a large amount of cocaine in the frame of an oil container that was seized in the Bay today (August 25).

The estimated value of the pure uncut cocaine found at this stage is R1,4-billion. Police are still dismantling the container.

The container was recovered at the Port of Ngqura earlier today after it was suspected to be carrying the drugs.

It was then transported to the police pound in Struandale, where it was cut open.

More information and video to follow.

http://www.theherald.co.za/article.aspx?id=599165



Massive coke haul found in PE

Port Elizabeth police on Wednesday afternoon found an estimated 400kg of cocaine in the frame of an oil container seized in the Bay, reports The HeraldOnline.

The estimated value of the pure uncut cocaine found at this stage is believed to be over R1 billion.

The container was recovered at the Port of Ngqura earlier Wednesday after it was suspected to be carrying the drugs.

It was then transported to the police pound in Struandale, where it was cut open and the haul discovered.

http://blogs.dispatch.co.za/dispatchnow/2010/08/25/massive-coke-haul-found-in-pe/



R1.4bn cocaine bust at harbour
2010-08-25 18:36

Port Elizabeth - Cocaine with a street value of about R1.4bn, was seized in an "unusual" container at the Ngqura harbour in Port Elizabeth on Wednesday, police said.

"The container was unusual in that it looked like a petrol tank and had a construction with pillars holding it together," police spokesperson Captain Sandra van Rensburg said.

"Inside the container we found 22 000 litres of oil and inside the pillars, the cocaine was hidden."

Police were still trying to establish the amount of drugs in the container. By late on Wednesday afternoon, they weighed out about 100kg, with an estimated street value of about R1.4bn.

Police suspect there was about 250kg of "pure cocaine".

"Right now, we still need to pump oil out of the container to see if there are more pillars inside," said Van Rensburg.

No arrests had been made yet.

http://www.news24.com/SouthAfrica/News/R14bn-worth-of-cocaine-seized-20100825

R1,4bn worth of cocaine seized

25-08-2010

Cocaine with a street value of about R1,4 billion, was seized in an "unusual" container at the Ngqura harbour in Port Elizabeth on Wednesday, police said.

"The container was unusual in that it looked like a petrol tank and had a construction with pillars holding it together," police spokeswoman Captain Sandra van Rensburg said.

"Inside the container we found 22,000 litres of oil and inside the pillars, the cocaine was hidden."

Police were still trying to establish how much of the drugs was in the container. By late Wednesday afternoon, they weighed out about 100 kilograms, with an estimated street value of about R1,4 billion.

Police suspect there was about 250 kilograms of "pure cocaine".

"Right now, we still need to pump oil out of the container to see if there are more pillars inside," said Van Rensburg.

No arrests had been made yet.

Van Rensburg said the container came from South America and was destined for East Africa.
http://www.iol.co.za/index.php?set_id=1&click_id=15&art_id=nw20100825184655349C197667

Cannabis worth £300,000 found on lorry in Portsmouth

25 August 2010 Last updated at 15:48 GMT

A man has been arrested after cannabis resin with a street value of £300,000 was found on a lorry on board a ferry at a Hampshire port.

Customs officers seized 100kg of the illegal cargo found in six white boxes hidden in a mixed load of goods as the lorry arrived in Portsmouth on Monday.

The 49-year-old British driver was arrested and questioned. He has since been bailed pending further inquiries.

The cargo was bound for destinations in Altrincham, Castleford and Norfolk.

A UK Border Agency (UKBA) spokesman said: "The cannabis is currently being tested to determine its street value, but it is believed to be worth approximately £300,000."

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-hampshire-11089212

Cincinnati CBP Officers Discover Marijuana in Tombstone

(Monday, August 23, 2010)
Cincinnati - U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers working at the Cincinnati DHL express consignment operation seized more than 52 pounds of marijuana last week. While the seizure of marijuana being smuggled into the country is nothing new to these officers, the method of concealment was something they had never seen before.

While conducting enforcement operations the officers became suspicious of a tombstone being shipped from Kingston, Jamaica to London, England.

“Why would someone ship a tombstone?” was the first thought of the officers. CBP narcotics detection dog “Rouge” alerted aggressively to the parcel and an x-ray examination revealed anomalies which resulted in the discovery of packages of marijuana.

The packages were concealed within a metal box, wrapped in metal mesh and hidden inside the concrete tombstone. The street value of the marijuana is approximately $52,000.

“This method of concealment further shows the great lengths drug smugglers will use to try to hide their product,” said Brian Humphrey, acting CBP director of field operations in Chicago. “I am very pleased with the officers' use of their intuition, experience and available resources in the detection and interdiction of this marijuana shipment.”

CBP officers and agriculture specialists are stationed at the express consignment facilities located throughout the country. CBP constantly conducts enforcement operations on international parcels and on the lookout for any type of contraband or prohibited items being shipped to the U.S.

http://www.cbp.gov/xp/cgov/newsroom/news_releases/local/08232010.xml

French authorities seize 3.3 tons hashish

This is the second largest seizure of cannabis since the beginning of the year. Investigators from the Central Directorate of Judicial Police (DCPJ) stopped on Wednesday, two large shipments of cannabis resin with a total weight of 3.3 tons.
Around 8:00 p.m., police in the Central Office for the Suppression of Illicit Trafficking in Drugs (OCRTIS), supported by investigators of the regional PJ Rouen (Seine-Maritime), have arrested six people suspected of belonging a network of traffickers in Saint-Etienne-du-Rouvray.

In a utility vehicle parked outside the home of the father of one of the suspects, investigators have seized almost 900 kilograms of hashish hidden in simple boxes.
For their part, officers of the Directorate of Inter PJ Lille (North), together with Customs officers intercepted the driver of a truck, registered in Belgium, traveling on the A1. Inside the truck, investigators found 2.5 tons of the same product. The driver, of Dutch nationality and age 53, was immediately placed in custody. According to initial investigations, the download seemed destined for Dutch and Belgian markets.
"These are two very significant seizure," says a source close to the case. The suspected traffickers arrested in Seine-Maritime are currently heard by the police. They are all aged in their thirties. One of them could be the organizer of this vast traffic in Rouen and its suburbs. He is a man with dual Spanish and Moroccan nationality. "

Seized 762 kilograms of cocaine hidden in sacks of coal at the Port of Bilbao

The drug was traveling in a container from Argentina

The operation resulted in the dismantling of an international network and the arrests of six of its members

The Guardia Civil and the Tax Office have seized 762 kilograms of cocaine that were hidden in sacks of charcoal inside a container from Argentina, in a joint operation at the Port of Bilbao.

The seizure was made possible thanks to the work of research by the Risk Analysis Unit of the Customs of the Port of Bilbao, consisting of Civil Guard officers and Customs surveillance at the entrance of goods, which takes place a comprehensive monitoring and analysis of cargo considered at risk.

This analysis procedure resulted in the location of a container in the port of Santurce contained inside large bags of charcoal, which were suspected of hiding drugs.

After a thorough inspection of all cargo is found the existence of 762 packages with a substance which, after appropriate analysis, proved to be high purity cocaine. Once altered, the contraband seized would have served to make more than four million doses for sale.

The detection of the drug triggered an investigation that has been able to expose the network to be responsible for receiving, processing and distribution of it. The operation was launched and coordinated jointly by the Organic Unit of the Judicial Police of the Guardia Civil Vizcaya Command and Operational Monitoring Unit of the Basque Country Customs allowed the identification and arrest of six people in Bilbao, Burgos and Málaga, all members of the criminal organization in Spain, but also has ramifications in South America.

The operation is still open pending achieve the total clarification of the facts and does not rule out further arrests may occur.

The detainees and the proceedings initiated have been made available to the competent judicial authority.

The media requiring more information can contact the Office Peripheral Communication (OPC) of the Civil Guard Command of Biscay to your 944.25.34.00

There are pictures of the operation in the press office of the Guardia Civil. Phone: 91.514.60.10

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Incautados 762 kilogramos de cocaína ocultos en sacos de carbón en el Puerto de Bilbao



La droga viajaba en un contenedor procedente de Argentina



La operación se salda con la desarticulación de una red internacional y con la detención de seis de sus integrantes



La Guardia Civil y la Agencia Tributaria han incautado 762 kilogramos de cocaína que iban camuflados en sacos de carbón vegetal en el interior de un contenedor procedente de Argentina, en una operación conjunta realizada en el Puerto de Bilbao.



La incautación ha sido posible gracias a las labores de investigación que realiza la Unidad de Análisis de Riesgos de la Aduana del Puerto de Bilbao, integrada por agentes de la Guardia Civil y de Vigilancia Aduanera, en la entrada de mercancías, donde se lleva a cabo un exhaustivo control y análisis de los cargamentos considerados de riesgo.



Este procedimiento de análisis dio como resultado la localización de un contenedor en el Puerto de Santurce que contenía en su interior gran cantidad de sacos de carbón vegetal, en los que se sospechaba que se ocultaba droga.



Tras una minuciosa inspección de la totalidad de la carga se constató la existencia de 762 paquetes con una sustancia que, tras los pertinentes análisis, resultó ser cocaína de una gran pureza. Una vez adulterado, el alijo incautado habría servido para preparar más de cuatro millones de dosis para su venta.



La detección de la droga desencadenó una investigación en la que se ha podido poner a descubierto la red que se encargaba de la recepción, tratamiento y distribución de la misma. El operativo puesto en marcha de manera conjunta y coordinada por la Unidad Orgánica de Policía Judicial de la Guardia Civil de la Comandancia de Vizcaya y por la Unidad Operativa de Vigilancia Aduanera del País Vasco permitió la identificación y detención de seis personas en Bilbao, Burgos y Málaga, todos ellos integrantes de la organización criminal en España, aunque también tiene ramificaciones en Sudamérica.



La operación continúa abierta a la espera de lograr el esclarecimiento total de los hechos y no se descarta que se puedan producir nuevas detenciones.



Los detenidos y las diligencias instruidas han sido puestos a disposición de la Autoridad Judicial competente.



Los medios de información que requieran más información pueden establecer contacto con la Oficina Periférica de Comunicación (OPC) de la Comandancia de Guardia Civil de Vizcaya al teléfono 944.25.34.00



Existen imágenes de la operación en el gabinete de prensa de la Guardia Civil. Teléfono: 91.514.60.10



http://www.guardiacivil.es/prensa/notas/noticia.jsp?idnoticia=2901

The National Police seized over half a tonne of hashish hidden in the structure of a truck

Traffickers inserted several drawers in a false bottom under the body of the vehicle, which contains 17 packs with drugs

Arrested a leading member of the organization responsible for transportation from various points in the Almería Costa del Sol to the zone of the Spanish Levant

19-August-2010 .- Agents of the National Police have arrested the leader of an organization carrying drug traffickers from different points of the Costa del Sol and Almeria to the Spanish Levante area, to cater to lower echelons. They have been seized in a warehouse in the Valencian town of Paiporta, 510 kilograms of hashish that had been hidden in a false bottom under the back of a truck.

Five months ago they were beginning the investigations, an organized group settled in the area of the Spanish Levant and could engage in drug trafficking. In particular, as well revealed the investigation, this group was supplied hashish in different municipalities of the Costa del Sol and Almeria, to take care of transportation to be a security. Then distributed the drugs to other dealers located in a lower step developing their illicit activity in different parts of the Levant area, including Cartagena (Murcia).

Checking the goods leader

Researchers located the site through which the organization was carrying hashish-in Paiporta (Valencia) - and set up a device that culminated with the arrest of the principal member of the group, right in the moment he was about to enter the warehouse .

On the premises they found a small truck tonnage to that drug traffickers had practiced several accommodations to locate the drug hidden in the box. Thus, seized 17 bales of hashish, with a total weight of 510 kilograms.

The operation, which has been developed by the group of drug agents from the police station in Cartagena with the collaboration of the UDYCO of Valencia, still open in order to arrest the remaining members of the group.

CBSA officers seize illicit narcotics at Hamilton International Airport

Hamilton, Ontario, August 16, 2010 – The Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) announced today the seizure of approximately 360 grams of heroin at the John C. Munro Hamilton International Airport.

On August 10, while examining a courier shipment of paper and nylon lampshades from India, CBSA officers discovered an anomaly in the thickness of the wooden frame of the shades. Officers found the suspected heroin, with an estimated street value of $144,000, concealed between wooden strips that had been glued together.

"This seizure was the result of the diligent work of CBSA officers who use their examination and investigative skills, as well as overall training, to identify indicators of concealment," said CBSA Hamilton/Kitchener District Director, Libby Tiberi. "I want to commend the work of our officers whose efforts have prevented the trafficking and distribution of illicit drugs."

In another recent seizure, CBSA officers at the Hamilton International Airport seized approximately one kilogram of opium with a street value of $25,000 that was concealed in the lining of a briefcase sent by courier from Turkey.

Since 2010, CBSA officers at the Hamilton International Airport have prevented $1.7 million worth of drugs from reaching our communities. These seizures help deter the smuggling of illegal drugs which undermines the safety of Canadian communities and fuels organized crime.

http://www.cbsa-asfc.gc.ca/media/prosecutions-poursuites/nffe/2010-08-16-eng.html

Venezuelan court sentences two Ukrainian sailors to 9 years in jail for drug smuggling

KYIV, August 16 / UKRINFORM/. A Venezuelan court has sentenced two citizens of Ukraine - Volodymyr Ustymenko and Yuriy Datchenko - to nine years in prison for drug smuggling.

"We're saddened by such a decision and will do everything possible to seek an early release for the sailors and their extradition to Ukraine," the Ukrainian Foreign Ministry's press service reported on Monday.

Kyiv has seven days to try to render assistance to the Ukrainians, because the sentence will then come into force. Then the Ukrainians will be sent to jail on the island of Margarita, which is known for the harsh conditions of detention: few people manage to return from there alive.

The relatives of the sailors expressed hope that the men would be extradited to Ukraine.

Two Ukrainian crewmembers of the B Atlantic ship were arrested on August 13, 2007 in the Venezuelan port of Maracaibo on suspicion of being involved in the smuggling of 128 kilograms of cocaine.

There was no direct evidence of their involvement in drug smuggling, however, the court issued the ruling, because the sailors were the captain and the senior aide of the vessel.

http://www.ukrinform.ua/eng/order/?id=195650

Venezuelan court sentences two Ukrainian sailors to 9 years in jail for drug smuggling

KYIV, August 16 / UKRINFORM/. A Venezuelan court has sentenced two citizens of Ukraine - Volodymyr Ustymenko and Yuriy Datchenko - to nine years in prison for drug smuggling.

"We're saddened by such a decision and will do everything possible to seek an early release for the sailors and their extradition to Ukraine," the Ukrainian Foreign Ministry's press service reported on Monday.

Kyiv has seven days to try to render assistance to the Ukrainians, because the sentence will then come into force. Then the Ukrainians will be sent to jail on the island of Margarita, which is known for the harsh conditions of detention: few people manage to return from there alive.

The relatives of the sailors expressed hope that the men would be extradited to Ukraine.

Two Ukrainian crewmembers of the B Atlantic ship were arrested on August 13, 2007 in the Venezuelan port of Maracaibo on suspicion of being involved in the smuggling of 128 kilograms of cocaine.

There was no direct evidence of their involvement in drug smuggling, however, the court issued the ruling, because the sailors were the captain and the senior aide of the vessel.

http://www.ukrinform.ua/eng/order/?id=195650

Chilean police have arrested two Spanish citizens carrying 12.6 kilos of cocaine

Chilean police have arrested Research in the Santiago International Airport to two Spanish citizens carrying 12.6 kilos of cocaine hidden in his clothes, sources from the institution.

The two Spanish citizens, who only said they have 35 and 43, were preparing to board a flight to Madrid when he caught the attention of agents by the unusual profile of their bodies, according to sources.
As revised, it was found that the drug had attached to their bodies with a special strip.

According to sources, those arrested will appear in court Monday warranty on charges of drug trafficking.


Detienen en un aeropuerto chileno a dos españoles con 12,6 kilos de cocaína
Santiago de Chile, 15 ago (EFE).- La Policía chilena de Investigaciones detuvo hoy en el aeropuerto internacional de Santiago a dos ciudadanos españoles que llevaban 12,6 kilos de cocaína ocultos en sus ropas, informaron fuentes de la institución.

Los dos españoles, de quienes sólo se dijo que tienen 35 y 43 años, se aprestaban a abordar un vuelo con destino a Madrid cuando llamaron la atención de los agentes por el perfil poco común de sus cuerpos, según las fuentes.
Al ser revisados, se constató que llevaban la droga adherida a sus cuerpos con unas fajas especiales.

Según las fuentes, los detenidos comparecerán este lunes en un tribunal de garantía, acusados de narcotráfico.

http://es.noticias.yahoo.com/9/20100815/tes-detienen-en-un-aeropuerto-chileno-a-61bd63d.html

The National Police arrested two people and 6.5 kilos of cocaine intercepted

They had planned to send the drug in a refrigerated truck loaded with frozen and bound for the United Kingdom

It goes unarticulated branch in Spain of an international organization that sent various drugs to several European countries


National Police agents have arrested two people in an industrial area of Mijas (Malaga) and 6.5 kilos of cocaine involved. The drug would travel in a refrigerated truck loaded with frozen and bound for the United Kingdom. It goes unarticulated branch in Spain of an international organization that sent various drugs to several European countries.

The investigation began last April on an organized group of individuals dedicated to sending British origin of drugs to the UK and Holland. They belonged to a larger organization that was distributed internationally and had a presence in several countries.

In particular, the leaders were in the United Kingdom and had branches in the Netherlands and Spain. The section in our country was based on the Costa del Sol and was in charge of getting the drug substance, especially cocaine, requesting clients. In addition, after receiving the money agreed upon, the cut, treated and proceeded to dispatch, primarily by vehicles ready.

The researchers learned that a common form of delivery of cocaine was through a trailer type truck which carries legal goods between Spain and the United Kingdom, which had a carrier was prepared for this purpose and usually driven by the same person.

Journey back with synthetic drugs
Besides cocaine, the organization sent to European countries other narcotics shipments of hashish and heroin, using vans equipped. Sometimes even using the return leg in Spain to introduce synthetic drugs from the Netherlands.

The surveillance on the organization allowed to know who was preparing a shipment of narcotics. The usual driver traveled by truck to an industrial estate in Mijas (Málaga) in order to carry frozen, but also with the intention of collecting the narcotic substance. The police operation led to the arrest of two people: the driver and a man who had given him a backpack that hid 6.5 kilos of cocaine were seized and the truck, a passenger car, six mobile phones and 355 euros.

The research has been developed by officers of the Central Narcotics Brigade and Cádiz GRECO General Commissariat of the Judicial Police and the UDYCO of Valencia, with the collaboration of GRECO Costa del Sol and the Campo de Gibraltar GRECO

Turkish police busts international drug trafickers gang

Friday, 13 August 2010 13:36

Turkish police apprehended six drug traffickers who were about to transport 142 kg of heroin to the Netherlands, officials said on Friday.

Narcotics police have followed a drug gang for six months in Turkey and launched an operation in Catalca town of Istanbul.

Police teams stopped a car with a foreign licence plate and found 11.3 kg of heroin stashed in hidden parts of the car.

A couple travelling in the car was detained, police said.

Following the operation in Istanbul, police teams launched another operation in western province of Duzce as a follow-up to the first operation. Police raided a depot where they found a huge heroin stash, around 130 kg.

Four more people were also detained in the ensuing operation, police said.

http://www.worldbulletin.net/news_detail.php?id=62537

How dogs arrest container load of cocaine released by Customs

Monday, 09 August 2010 21:19 Shehu Abubakar, in Lagos

Chairman and Chief Executive of the NDLEA, Ahmadu Giade told Daily Trust in an exclusive interview that the agency got intelligence reports from its foreign collaborators on the movement of the container, several weeks before its arrival in Nigeria. He said the agency was also notified when the ship that left Bolivia with the container, was substituted by another on the international waters, before reaching Nigeria.
He said two Chinese nationals, the Managing Director of the agency responsible for the clearance of the container, and the manager of the agency that cleared it , were all arrested by his men in an operation that lasted 3 days.

“Sometime in May this year, we received information from our foreign collaborators, specifically the American Drug Law Enforcement Agency, that there is a container with wooden pallets in it coming from Bolivia, through Chile to Nigeria. Because of recent experience of concealments in such wooden pallets, we should look at it when it comes to Nigeria. The bill of laden sent to us was in Portuguese language. So, we had to send it to experts who translated it to English. We looked at the two addresses given in the import papers and found them to be fake.
“We monitored the movement of the container which was supposed to arrive Nigeria since June 30. But we understand that the container was trans-loaded to another ship, so there was a delay. It did not arrive until July. When it finally arrived, it was offloaded and tagged, which was the normal procedure. It came in through the Tin Can Island. So, we kept watch until it was cleared. The container was said to be containing personal effects. Ten days after, somebody came to us and said he was the clearing agent, and wanted us to sign documents for him that it was cleared. I asked my Commander to sign it.

“We got the address of that clearing agent. We checked the address and found it to be fake. Two days later, the clearing agent came to take the container. It was put on a truck. The seal was cut off, indicating that it was free to be taken away. It was then taken out of the port. We trailed it to an area at Iganmu (in Lagos) where after its arrival within an hour, some people driving a motorcycle and a jeep arrived the place. It was then we contacted the people to know the owner and contents of the container. The people told us that it was one Alhaji whose office is at Apapa that is the clearing agent. We asked them to open the container so that we could know the contents first.

“The container was opened and the contents were offloaded. At the time of the offloading, we mobilized all my relevant staff that can detect the presence of drugs. We also mobilized our sniffer dogs and forensic laboratory experts. The dogs actually gave us signs of the presence of drugs in the container through their barking. When we looked carefully at the processed woods in the container, we discovered that there were some small synthetic things put in the woods. We brought the things out, examined them and discovered that they contain ‘pure cocaine’. At the end of the day, we were able to get about 450.4 kilograms of cocaine concealed in those processed woods. We took over the contents and those arrested. They were interrogated and through them, we got the contact address of the Alhaji. Coincidentally, somebody contacted my Commander at the Murtala Mohammed International airport, Lagos, to know if there was any seizure of drugs at the Tin Can Island. He told my Commander that an Alhaji wanted to know. The Alhaji was invited to our office, and he turned out to be the clearing agent we were looking for. There and then, he was handed over to the investigators,” Giade said.

The Alhaji who gave his name as Alhaji Inuwa Mohammed, the Managing Director of Jafana Ventures Limited said he was contracted by a Kano based Chinese national, Mr Richard Wang to clear the container for him. Alhaji Inuwa, told Daily Trust in his detention room at the headquarters of the National Drugs Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) in Lagos, that he was paid N3 million by Richard Wang for the clearance, and he paid two million Naira (N2 million) to Custom officials at the Tin Can Island port through his clearance manager, Kingsley, to secure an unhindered clearance and release of the container. He said Custom officials at the port had cleared the container and allowed it to go, before the NDLEA operatives trailed it to Iganmu, and intercepted it.

He said when his manager called and told him that operatives from the NDLEA have intercepted the container at Iganmu area of Lagos after it was cleared and released by Custom officials at the port, he contacted a Custom official who arranged a meeting for him with some NDLEA operatives at the Lagos airport, from where he was arrested. He said the two Chinese nationals that contracted him to clear the container for them, told him that it contained cigarettes. “We also told the Customs at the port that it was cigarettes. I don’t know if Custom officials inspected the container or not.

“When I phoned my Custom friend (name withheld), he linked me up with the NDLEA Commander at the Lagos airport, who asked me to meet him at the airport. I met him the next day and he said look, call the actual owner of the goods to come and clear his goods, before things go wrong. I called Richard and he said he will be coming to Lagos from Kano with a Dana flight. Meanwhile, the Commander at the airport had already invited the Commander investigating the case, who told me to tell Richard that he can come with the money to clear the container. They warned me to play along with them, so as not to scare Richard, because he may decide to fly out of the country when scared.

“But before the arrival of the Dana airline flight from Kano, Richard phoned me to meet him at Sheraton hotel, Lagos. We met him there. I introduced the Commander investigating the case, as the officer sent to collect money, and release the container. Richard brought out N2 million, but I told him they were demanding N4 million. He then added N500,000 to make it N2.5 million. The officer collected the money and asked him to follow us to his office to sign an agreement on when he will bring the balance. He followed us and they arrested him on getting to the office, he said.

Richard Wang told this reporter that his fellow Chinese national, Fong Chiusen who is based in Ibadan, contacted him and told him that his container containing cigarettes will be arriving the country , and he wanted him to arrange for a clearing agent to clear it for him. He said Fong gave him the sum of N5 million to clear it , and he paid Alhaji Inuwa the sum of N3,610,000 for the clearance. He said Alhaji Inuwa had cleared his goods trice last year when he made some imports. He said when was told by Alhaji Inuwa that the container was intercepted by the NDLEA on the allegation that it contained drugs, he brought with him the sum of N3 million and gave Alhaji Inuwa, and the Commander N2.5 million at the hotel.

But Fong Chiusen, an Ibadan based Chinese national who said he has been in Nigeria for close to 30 years, said the actual owner of the container is based in Taiwan. “I was in Taiwan early this year. I met the owner there and he told me he wants to send cigarettes to me to help him forward to another country. He did not tell me which country, but he gave me 60,000 US dollars for the clearing and forwarding. When the container left Chile, he phoned and told me. I contacted Richard to clear the container for me. I gave him N5 million to clear it. When he told me it was arrested and more money was needed, I gave him an additional N3 million,” he said.

Fong said he had no idea that the container had cocaine and processed wood in it. He said his China based friend who sent the container to him, told him it only contains cigarettes. He was surprised that no cigarettes were found in it. He said he prefers to be tried by Nigerian courts where he has a lot of friends that may assist in freeing him, than in China where he may face a death sentence for drug trafficking. He said officials of the Chinese embassy in Nigeria have visited them in custody, but could not make any categorical statement on the type of assistance they may extend to them.

NDLEA boss, Ahmadu Giade who described last week’s seizure of the 450.4 kilograms of cocaine as the second highest single seizure of cocaine made in the history of the agency’s operation in Nigeria, said the drugs seized is valued at over N4 billion. He said the highest single seizure of cocaine made in Nigeria was in 2006 when 14.2 metric tonnes were intercepted at the same Tin Can Island port. The 2006 seizure was tagged the 5th highest in the World. He said since 2006 when the seizure was made, nobody has been arrested as the importers abandoned the drugs.

“The Agency is determined to send all drug barons out of circulation to prevent criminal acts capable of disrupting peace and stability in the country. I have therefore called for total security alertness at all entry and exit points. State Commanders have also been placed on red alert to ensure effective surveillance, and prompt arrests and seizures of any illicit drug shipment,” Giade stressed.

But one aspect of this report that our reporter tried to explore is the fact that the highest single seizure of cocaine was recorded in Nigeria in 2006, just a year to the 2007 general elections in the country. Similarly, last week’s arrest described as the second highest single seizure of cocaine is also coming a year to the 2011 general election. When this reporter attempted to seek the opinion of security operatives at the Tin Can Island port that serves as the entry point of the two major single importations of the highest quantities of cocaine, no one was interested in responding.

Commenting on the seizure by the NDLEA, the Customs Public Relations officer (PRO) of Tin Can Island area command, Mr Chris Sunkwo an Assistant Superintendent of Customs, told Daily Trust in his office at Lagos , that though the container in question was actually cleared by the Customs, it was not scanned. He said the non-scanning of the container was not a deliberate attempt, but a professional strategy.

This is coming on the heels of fresh revelations by Mr Kingsley, a Clearing Agent who said he was the very person that appeared at the port and cleared the container on behalf of the Managing Director of his clearing agency, Jafana Ventures Nigeria Limited, Alhaji Inuwa Mohammed. Kingsley said the N2 million given to him by Alhaji Inuwa to clear the container was not given to the Customs or any agency as a bribe, or to facilitate the speedy clearance of the container. “The consignee of that container, I mean the Chinese man did not tell us it contained drugs. He declared the contents as personal effects. We need not pay Customs anything to clear personal effects. I did the clearance myself.”

The Customs PRO, Mr Sunkwo explained that not all containers that arrived the country through the port are scanned, or subjected to 100 percent physical inspection. “If we must scan all containers or subject them to 100 percent physical inspection, there will be unprecedented congestion here. Containers will be held for months before they are cleared. We would go back to the era of ports congestion we just left. No importer would like to bring his or her goods through Nigerian ports again. That was why government categorized the system of clearance of containers into four, and the containers are cleared on the basis of the category your container falls in.

“We have parameters in the new clearance procedure. We have four channels where you make your goods declaration, because of the e-payment system we are using. After making your declaration, couple your documents then you go through the DTI (Direct Traders Intrict Cafe) and request for release of your goods. When you request for release, it is then that the system will determine the status of your declaration. If your status qualifies for GREEN, it means the system has recognized your submission as an honest declaration. It will certify you okay, and release your consignment. But if the result is BLUE which is especially reserved for manufacturers, you are then allowed to take your consignment straight to your premises under Customs escorts. All clearance formalities are then done in your premises.

“If the result is YELLOW, it means there is something wrong with your declaration, and so you must clarify with the query and amendment unit of the Customs. The unit will review your declaration and tell you everything wrong about it. But if the result goes for LIGHT-RED, it means the consignment must be taken to the scanning arena for scanning. Remember, for all cargos scanned, the results of the scanning are printed. So, the results of scanning cannot be manipulated. If the result of the scanning is at variance with your declaration, then your consignment is subject for recheck. That is when we carry 100 percent physical examination of the consignment to discover the discrepancy. This is the government approved procedure for the clearance of consignments at this port. So, in the case of this consignment in question, it was routed for physical examination and it was properly examined. But because of the nature of the concealment, nothing could be detected.

“I am of the opinion that every human made system has its shortcomings. I would have loved a situation where the consignment will be returned to the port, take it through the scanner and see what the result will be. We would learn a lot from there. It is a way forward! No system is perfect. The result will teach us to know how reliable the system (scanners) is. You see, even the NDLEA succeeded in intercepting the consignment , because of the advanced information they got about it from America which we do not have ,and they did not share that information with us. Yes, if the NDLEA said some of the documents used by the clearing agents were fictitious, they may be right. I have not seen the documents to know how they are. I know that whenever we discover fictitious documents, we arrest the persons and prosecute,” he said.

http://www.dailytrust.com/dailytrust/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=835:how-dogs-arrest-container-load-of-cocaine-released-by-customs&catid=24:star-feature

Guardia ivil in Malaga dismantled drug organization and seize 105 kilos Coke

Team Organized Crime and Drug Enforcement (Edoas) of the Civil Guard in Malaga has involved 105 kilograms of cocaine and has carried out the dismantling of an organization run from Madrid and allegedly smuggling cocaine in Spain by different modus operandi.

Thus, in early November last year, Malaga Edoas began operation called 'Dacia' to dismantle the gang that allegedly was run by SP Wilson, born in Colombia in 1969, and Carlos ADO, born in Colombia in 1973 , as reported by Civil Guard in a statement.

Throughout the investigations carried out agents detected an appointment at one of Seville between the two leaders of the organization and an unknown person and noted that the latter received a small bag and headed for the train station picking Sevilla a bound for Malaga AVE.

Given the suspicions that might have been a drug transaction chose to proceed with the identification of the individual in Malaga train station. Thus, upon arrival in Malaga, Juan de Dios arrested RL, as the alleged perpetrator of an alleged crime against public health, to carry in a backpack, a package wrapped in gray tape american containing 900 grams of cocaine.

The investigation also found out on a boat bound for Spain, carrying a container with palm inside which could hide a significant amount of cocaine and that would dock at the port of Valencia.

After obtaining the proper authorization was performed opening the container, and breaking the seals were observed on the goods declared - cans of palm - two bags of nylon carrying 43 packages, containing a weight of 50 kilograms.

It was also met the arrival of a "mule" from Caracas (Venezuela) bound for Madrid. In Barajas Airport MRT stopped Lydia, born in Ecuador in 1966, which was carrying two bags 20 kilograms of cocaine.

Furthermore, they found that the organization was using an international transport company for air shipment of the drug, which involved four packages with a weight of 34 kilograms of cocaine.

After proceedings in a controlled delivery was conducted of the drug, stopping and Charles Wilson, when they came to remove the goods, as alleged perpetrators of an alleged crime against public health.

Finally, both the four detainees such as drugs seized have gone into custody, and ordered his imprisonment, as reported by the Guardia Civil.

Heroin smuggling busted

Heroin smuggling busted
Covers removed, the cleverly concealed haul of more than 6kg of heroin visible within the metal wheels declared as ‘spare motor parts’ detected by the Sri Lankan police narcotics bureau at the island’s Bandaranaike International Airport in Colombo yesterday. The drug haul valued at around Rs28mn ($250,000) were in the possession of a 65-year-old Pakistani who has claimed that he is a father of three and that this is his third visit to the island. The person had arrived at the airport from Lahore in Pakistan and the heroin detected by the police when the person was coming out after declaring the items as motor spare parts and paying the relevant taxes

http://www.gulf-times.com/site/topics/article.asp?cu_no=2&item_no=378831&version=1&template_id=44&parent_id=24

Drug-Sniffing Dog Chile Helps N.M. CBP Officers Find Concealed Drugs

Monday, August 09, 2010)


El Paso, Texas – U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers working at the Santa Teresa, N.M. port of entry made two marijuana seizures Wednesday, including one bust where the drugs were found concealed in the rails of a gooseneck vehicle hauler.

“Smuggling organizations will use every imaginable concealment method to try to get narcotics through our international ports of entry.” said Charles L. Wright, port director for CBP in Santa Teresa. “To most people, this was just travelers crossing the port of entry hauling a trailer and another with tile, but to the well trained CBP narcotic detector dog, it was a smuggling attempt.”


The larger of the two seizures was made at 4:15 p.m. when a 39-year-old man of Ciudad Juarez, Mexico, driving a 1999 Ford Ranger hauling a homemade gooseneck trailer, arrived from Mexico and told officers he had nothing to declare other than the trailer. He said he was going to use the trailer to pick up his sister’s vehicle and export it to Mexico. CBP officers initiated an exam of the vehicle during which CBP drug sniffing dog Chile alerted to the trailer.


CBP officers probed one of the trailer rails and found a green leafy substance. The contests tested positive for marijuana. CBP officers removed a total of 44 pounds of marijuana.


The second seizure was made at approximately 6:11 p.m. when a 53-year-old man of El Paso, Texas driving a 1996 Ford F-150 told officers that he had tile to declare. CBP drug-sniffing dog Chile searched the truck and alerted to the two tile boxes in the bed of the truck. The truck was taken to a separate inspection area where an extensive inspection of the boxes was conducted. CBP officers discovered that the center tiles of each box had been hollowed out and found marijuana-filled packages concealed inside. CBP officers discovered a total of 16 packages with a weight of 17.49 pounds.


CBP officers arrested both drivers and then turned them over to the Las Cruces, N.M. Narcotic Task Force agents.
http://www.cbp.gov/xp/cgov/newsroom/news_releases/local/08092010_2.xml

DHS is slated for failing to meet 100pc sea freight screening deadline

9-8-2010

THE US Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has been slammed for continuing to push back the deadline to scan 100 per cent of US-bound sea freight, arriving from foreign ports, by a further two years to 2014.

On the third anniversary of the Implementing Recommendations of the 9/11 Commission Act of 2007 (Public Law 110-53), the DHS plan was slated for failing to meet the sea cargo scanning requirement that is intended to detect terrorist weapons hidden onboard US-bound vessels, reports Home Security Today.

"When Congress approved the 100 per cent scanning mandate, the potential loss of life and economic disruption that would result from the detonation of a dirty bomb at a busy US port was foremost in our minds," said Republican Bennie Thompson, chair of the House Homeland Security Committee, in a statement.
"Three years later, the agency charged with implementing this important security provision has made no measurable progress. Instead, the Department of Homeland Security has expended its resources on campaigning against the 100 per cent scanning mandate, a vital provision of the 9/11 Act that then-President (George W) Bush signed into law," he added.

Mr Thompson along with two other congressmen wrote to Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano to slam the department's continued push to extend or override the 2012 statutory deadline for 100 per cent scanning of cargo containers leaving foreign ports for the United States.

"Rather, it is our understanding that DHS is seeking to extend the deadline by two years for all ports worldwide without developing a plan to implement the scanning requirement by a date certain pursuant to the statute," the lawmakers wrote.

To date, CBP estimates that it is scanning only five per cent of US-bound sea freight.
Shipping Gazette - Daily Shipping News 2010/08/09

JOINT ACTION IN makes sure 16 TONS OF PHENYL ETHYL ACETATE

As part of the joint actions undertaken by the Federal Government to combat crimes against health, the Attorney General's Office, the Department of Navy, Army of Mexico and the Ministry of Finance through the Administration Service Tax said 16 tons of phenyl ethyl acetate, a substance regarded as a precursor chemical in the Office of Lazaro Cardenas, Michoacan.

Derived from survey work conducted by the Central Customs Regulation 80 dairy farms were insured for up to 200 kg each, containing in its interior Ethyl phenylacetate (precursor chemical used in the production of synthetic drugs).

Therefore the prosecutor of the Federation, with the help of the Federal Police Ministerial and chemical experts, was formed in the Mega container terminal in the port area, where it was inspected a container from Shanghai China, which had as Guatemala final destination, which underwent a revision in its interior, locate and secure the aforementioned chemical precursor, so that started the preliminary investigation AP/PGR/MICH/LC/213/2010 for the crime against health against the person or persons responsible.

The goods were made available to the public prosecutor of the Federation for legal purposes, which in his case, it is appropriate.

Such detections are achieved through the implementation of risk models in the customs of the country, thus preventing illegal activities affecting the security and national welfare, so the Federal Government will continue to hold firm with an unwavering commitment society to strengthen the rule of law and ensure public safety throughout the country.

Spain's Cocaine Trade Dominated by Bulgarians, Romanians

August 9, 2010, Monday



Bulgarians are reported to be very active in organized crime in Spain. Photo by EPA/BGNES
The Spanish police have found that Bulgarian and Romanians are specialists in the trafficking of cocaine, reports the Spanish paper ABC.

Half of the persons arrested in Spain for organized crime activities are reported to be foreign citizens, including many Eastern Europeans.

While the Bulgarians and Romanians are found to be frequent dealers in cocaine trafficking, the trade itself is reported to be organized most often by Columbian and Spanish citizens.

Bulgarian nationals are said to have become “reputable” suppliers of drugs in Almeria and Alicante, the ABC newspaper reports.

Moroccans dominate the trading with hashish, while Romanians and Albanians are found to be specialists on crimes dealing with financial institutions. Kosovo Albanians on the other hand are increasingly dominating the raids on real estate properties in Spain and are becoming involved with drug trafficking and prostitution as well.

http://www.novinite.com/view_news.php?id=118977

Finland used by drug smugglers as gateway to Russia

Rising standards of living boost demand for Western drugs



Increasing amounts of illegal drugs are being smuggled to Russia, with Finland as a transit point.
According to Russian officials, smuggling has increased gradually over the past five years.
Timo Virtanen , the police and customs liaison officer of the Nordic Countries, who is stationed in St. Petersburg, says that rising standards of living in Russia have increased demand in Russia for Western types of drugs.
“Heroin is certainly still an extremely big problem here, but recently amphetamine, cocaine, and hashish have emerged. That can be seen on the border between Finland and Russia.”

Officials in the Nordic Countries have also made note of Finland’s role as a drug transit point, even though the Finnish customs puts greater priority on traffic coming into the country.
In the spring, Finnish customs found its first two large quantities of cannabis at the eastern border, as they were being taken to Russia by train.
A Russian man was sentenced to more than two years imprisonment by South Karelia District Court in May for smuggling six kilogrammes of hashish. A Russian woman was given a suspended sentence of one year and ten months for complicity.
The National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) reports that Russian customs have seized a couple of loads of hashish at the border.

In recent years Finnish authorities have received information from Swedish police that Russian drug mules have been arrested in Sweden who were planning to deliver a quantity of drugs to Russia via Finland.
Most recently Swedish police seized over 100 kilos of cannabis, which they say was being taken from Central Europe to Russia via Finland.
The car used in the smuggling operation had made several trips between Russia and Central Europe via Finland.

The NBI believes that Russian and Estonian criminals have a strong foothold in Spain’s Costa del Sol, from where Moroccan cannabis is transported to Finland and Russia.
Hashish is typically smuggled into Finland by Estonian and Finnish couriers, while Russians generally take care of transport to their own country.
Hashish is also smuggled to Russia from Iran. However, Virtanen notes that Iranian hashish is of a different quality than that from Morocco, and it has not been found in Finland yet.

Amphetamine crosses the border between Finland and Russia in both directions. However, the NBI estimates that more than 90 per cent of amphetamine destined for Finland is brought in from Estonia.
Amphetamine typically originates in The Netherlands, Belgium, and Germany. There is plenty of demand for it in Russia, even though Russia has amphetamine laboratories of its own.
Cocaine is also smuggled into Russia via Finland.
http://www.hs.fi/english/article/Finland+used+by+drug+smugglers+as+gateway+to+Russia/1135259229895

Drug profits take a hammering as Benzocaine haul is burned

9th August 2010

UK cocaine dealers have been denied potential profits running into millions of pounds after huge shipments of a chemical used to bulk out the drug were destroyed.

Two tonnes of Benzocaine, which arrived in four consignments at UK ports in the space of just one week, were seized by SOCA as part of a sustained assault on the trade in so-called ‘cutting agents’. When none of the four importers were able to provide SOCA with evidence of any legitimate customers in the UK, the haul was incinerated. SOCA has successfully prosecuted drug dealers using bulk quantities of cutting agents in the recent past and continues to do so.

By diluting cocaine, traffickers can make it go a lot further for very little cost, leading to huge profits. In recent years, dealers have moved away from inert substances, like sugar and baby milk powder, in favour of pharmaceutical substances, including anaesthetics like Benzocaine and Lidocaine. Both these mimic the numbing effect of cocaine, and resemble it closely in colour and texture, making it easier to conceal the fact that the drugs have been cut.

These ‘pharmaceutical’ cutting agents have helped traffickers to extend their market in the UK, particularly to young people aged from their mid teens to early twenties. By the time the drug has been cut at every stage of the trafficking process, it can reach street level with a purity as low as 2%. Users won’t get the buzz they expected but won’t know why, and every link in the criminal chain will have maximised its profits.

Sharon Lemon, SOCA Deputy Director, said:

“SOCA prosecutes those supporting the illegal drug market wherever it can. But we also want to find ways to cause damage and disruption to the large numbers involved. This seizure has taken millions out of drug dealers’ pockets – money which would have been reinvested in crime.

“This is an ongoing process. We can expect to see traffickers try to switch to other methods. We know what these are and will be watching. Importantly, their preferred agent has been denied to them so they will have to resort to poorer substitutes. These will not mask the cutting as effectively so people are much more likely to notice that they are getting a drop in quality but no drop in price.”

Brodie Clark, Head of the Border Force, said:

“With the purity levels of street level cocaine falling, preventing the importation of cutting agents is becoming increasingly important. Last month, a woman was jailed for nine years after we successfully proved that importing a cutting agent illegally was tantamount to supplying cocaine.

“That landmark ruling gives us much greater scope to target those involved in all aspects of drug smuggling, including those importing the likes of Benzocaine.”

Pharmaceutical cutting agents are chemically active substances which have health implications and side effects in their own right. Human consumption should generally be under medical supervision. One cutting agent, phenacetin, was banned in the UK when it was found to be carcinogenic and to cause renal failure, and last month an Irish coroner’s court reported on the death of a teenager who had taken cocaine mixed with four times the toxic dose of Lidocaine.

http://www.soca.gov.uk/news/260-drug-profits-take-a-hammering-as-benzocaine-haul-is-burned-

Cruise ship smuggler jailed for over ten years

10 Aug 2010 15:20

A Birmingham man has been jailed for 10 years and six months for his part in an attempt to smuggle 20 kilos of cocaine into the UK from a cruise ship at Southampton.

Claudie Shylie Anglin, 28, was arrested at the south coast port on 19 October 2008 as he prepared to meet four drug smugglers. They were each found with cocaine strapped to their bodies as they disembarked the cruise ship Arcadia which had sailed from the Caribbean.

The four couriers, Camille Dupee, Briony Dyce, Calvin Hylton and Natalie Quinn, were each jailed for 10 years and six months after pleading guilty at Southampton Crown Court in December 2008.

They had picked up the cocaine – worth £1.7m – in St Lucia and were stopped by customs as they attempted to bring the drugs into the country.

Anglin was waiting to meet the four when he was arrested in a car park opposite the Arcadia.

Smuggling routes being monitored
Malcolm Bragg, assistant director of criminal and financial investigations for the UK Border Agency, said: 'Smugglers will stop at nothing to bring drugs into the country – even posing as cruise passengers. This case shows that we are monitoring all potential smuggling routes into the UK and will also stop at nothing to protect the UK from harmful drugs.'

http://www.wired-gov.net/wg/wg-news-1.nsf/lfi/DNWA-887JTZ

Navy tracking system to crack down on drugs smuggling

Monday, August 9, 2010

By Juno McEnroe

Monday, August 09, 2010

A SOPHISTICATED new €1.4 million vessel tracking system for the Naval Service is expected to boost the surveillance of drug smuggling ships.




The use of the Recognised Maritime Picture (RMP) will see patrolling naval vessels respond quicker to suspect ships approaching the Irish coastline.

The advanced computerised set-up will bring together on one system satellite images, long range tracking technology as well as the already standard automatic identification systems for vessels.

Once in operation, data on vessels, including their location, speed and direction, will be fed into the RMP system through land-based radar as well as satellite systems.

A naval spokesman added: "It’s a system of systems. It will all be collated and come under one computer display. It will help reduce our response time to a situation."

Recent high-profile seizures involving the Irish navy have netted over €1.3 billion in drugs destined for Irish shores.

Operation Seabight in late 2008 – which also involved gardaí and Revenue – foiled a €700 million cocaine smuggling operation.

Up to 75 bales of cocaine were removed from the yacht Dances With Waves at Castletownbere, Co Cork, after it was seized 290km off the south-west coast of Ireland. It was the biggest drug seizure ever in the state.

Months earlier, naval officers were involved in the seizure of €600m in cocaine at Dunlough Bay, off Mizen Head, Co Cork.

Meanwhile, initial use of the new RMP tracking system for vessels is expected to be implemented by the year end, the naval service said.

It is anticipated the system, which will also eliminate "innocent" or non-suspect ships on naval patrol screens, will be fully functional within five years.

The naval service has a limited use of satellite systems and long range tracking of vessels and relies in part on automatic identification systems (AIS) for ships.

Using AIS though only allows the navy to track a vessel once it is within 32km of shore or another ship. The spokesman said: "It could be the difference between a vessel squeezing through the net or it being caught with the new system."

When the system is fully up and running it will also give anti-drug smuggling forces a "real time" awareness of vessels in Irish waters.

Current tracking systems used to monitor the movement of fishing vessels take two hours to be fed to naval patrol ships.
This story appeared in the printed version of the Irish Examiner Monday, August 09, 2010

http://www.irishexaminer.com/ireland/kfcwqlmhojey/rss2/

Officers seize cocaine cutting agent at Stansted Airport

Monday, 9 August, 2010
15:57 PM


MORE than 80 barrels of benzocaine – a cutting agent used to bulk out cocaine – have been seized at UK ports including Stansted Airport.

In a one-week period in May, officers from the Serious Organised Crime Agency (Soca) confiscated two tonnes of benzocaine (83 barrels) which had been imported by four people into the Essex hub and Felixstowe sea port.

A generous estimate of the entire legitimate use of benzocaine by the UK dental industry in one year is 3.4 tonnes, none of which is imported in powder form.

A spokesman for Soca said: “Cutting agents are the substances used by drug traffickers to bulk out illegal drugs and preserve profit margins. In the past these have often been inert substances like sugar and baby milk powder.

“At present the cutting agent of choice for cocaine traffickers is benzocaine as it most closely resembles cocaine in colour and texture and, as it is an anaesthetic, mimics the slight numbing effect of cocaine.

“This makes it easier to conceal the fact that drugs have been cut, and so maximises the profit at all levels without losing customers. It’s one of the reasons we routinely see seizures of drugs of only 5 to 10 per cent purity.

“The chemical properties of these cutting agents have enabled traffickers to target younger people in the UK – from mid teens to early 20s – with more ‘affordable’ cocaine that masks its lower purity.”

The importation of cutting agents is not currently regulated, however supplying them to the illicit drug trade is an offence. The challenge in the past for law enforcement has been proving a criminal connection.

Last week, officers delivered the two tonnes to an authorised waste disposal site where it was incinerated.

“We can expect to see traffickers try to switch to other methods,” said a Soca spokesman. “We know what these are and will be watching. Importantly, their preferred agent has been denied to them so they will have to resort to poorer substitutes. These will not mask the cutting as effectively so people will much more easily spot that the drugs they buy are adulterated.”


FACT FILE

● Cocaine seized at the UK border is typically between 60 per cent and 80 per cent pure.

● Cocaine seized at street level ranges from typically 24 per cent pure to 2 per cent pure.

● Some criminals are selling 100 per cent cutting agent as cocaine.

● Industry experts estimate that the total use of benzocaine in the UK is between 8 and 10 tonnes a year.

● The UK dental industry uses an estimated maximum of 3.4 tonnes a year

● To produce creams, sprays and ointments (for example Waspeze, which contains 1 per cent benzocaine) requires a sterile laboratory process which is licensed and regulated to protect the public. ● One barrel of benzocaine is 25 kilos. Cost is approx £300 per barrel. Barrels are sold on for approx £1800.

● One tonne of benzocaine is 40 barrels. SOCA seized 83 barrels in one week in May 2010.

http://www.saffronwaldenreporter.co.uk/news/officers_seize_cocaine_cutting_agent_at_stansted_airport_1_561650

Man charged with Stansted drug smuggling attempt

9 August 2010

A man has been charged with attempting to smuggle heroin into the UK through Stansted Airport in Essex.

The 46-year-old Dutch man was arrested after he arrived on a flight from Turkey on 7 August.

He is accused of swallowing packages of the drug with an estimated street value of £25,000.

The man is due to appear before Uxbridge Magistrates' Court charged with attempting to import a Class A drug.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-essex-10916211

Heroin smuggling busted

Covers removed, the cleverly concealed haul of more than 6kg of heroin visible within the metal wheels declared as ‘spare motor parts’ detected by the Sri Lankan police narcotics bureau at the island’s Bandaranaike International Airport in Colombo yesterday. The drug haul valued at around Rs28mn ($250,000) were in the possession of a 65-year-old Pakistani who has claimed that he is a father of three and that this is his third visit to the island. The person had arrived at the airport from Lahore in Pakistan and the heroin detected by the police when the person was coming out after declaring the items as motor spare parts and paying the relevant taxes




http://www.gulf-times.com/site/topics/article.asp?cu_no=2&item_no=378831&version=1&template_id=44&parent_id=24

The National Police apprehended in Irun a truck loaded with 600 kilos of hashish hidden among bottles of red wine

Arrested the driver of the trailer Irish

10-August-2010 .- National Police agents have intercepted in Irun (Guipúzcoa) a trailer type truck loaded with 600 kilograms of hashish. The drug was traveling hidden in bottles of red wine and its final destination was the UK. The driver, an Irish national, was arrested on suspicion of a crime against public health.

Among the investigations against drug trafficking developed nationally by the Central UDYCO, agents learned of a possible transport of drugs would take place through Spanish roads. The final destination would be another European Union country.

The researchers were able to locate the suspect transport, in particular a tractor-trailer in Irun (Guipúzcoa). Once intercepted the vehicle, conducted a thorough examination of the trailer, many localized packets of hashish inside the boxes containing bottles of wine. A total of six hundred kilograms of narcotic drug extracted.

The operation was carried out by agents of the Central UDYCO the Judicial Police Commissioner-General and the Group of Judicial Police in the station of Irun.

4 BILLION COCAINE: CHINESE SUSPECTS FACES TRIAL IN NIGERIA

08/04/2010 - 21:16

The Chairman/Chief Executive of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) Ahmadu Giade says all suspects arrested in connection with the unlawful importation of 450.400kg of cocaine will be prosecuted in the country. The suspects that may likely be arraigned include two Chinese business men Richard Wang, 62, an importer of textiles and shopping bags and Chiusen Fong, 54, a timber merchant as well as a Nigerian Alhaji Inua Mohammed, 56 who is a clearing agent. It was gathered that the decision to arraign them in the country may have kept the Chinese in high spirit since the law in China stipulates capital punishment for drug trafficking.
NDLEA boss says the Agency is not considering extradition for now and that the suspects will be charged to court in the country as soon as investigation was completed. According to the Agent, he was contacted by a Chinese Richard Wang to clear the said container and take it to Ibadan. “I am a clearing agent. Richard Wang came to me to clear a container. He told me the container had cigarettes and gave me 3 million naira for the clearance”.

However, Fong in his statement said that he gave Wang 5 million naira to clear the container. When Wang was arrested, he said that he was working for one Chiusen Fong who lives in Kano. That was how they were all nabbed. The seizure of 450.400kg of cocaine imported from Chile at the Tin can Island port Lagos agency sources revealed was masterminded by an international drug syndicate that smuggles cocaine from South American countries to West Africa.


The anti-drug Agency had kept tab on the consignment which originated from Chile and passed through Peru, Bolivia and Antwerp to Tin Can Island Port (TCIP). According to Giade, “the drug was neatly concealed in customized floor wood inside a container which was cleared and taken to a private warehouse at Iganmu, Lagos”.

The NDLEA commended the United States Drug Enforcement Administration for supplying the intelligence that led to the crackdown. “The Agency is determined to send all drug barons out of circulation to prevent criminal acts capable of disrupting peace and stability in the country. I have therefore called for total security alertness in all entry and exit points. State Commanders have also been placed on red alert to ensure effective surveillance and prompt arrests and seizures of any illicit drug shipment” Giade stressed.

The NDLEA boss also commended the perseverance and commitment of the undercover officers that spent days and nights on the field in making “Operation Chile” verysuccessful. He promised that Nigeria will not only sustain the country’s leading position in drug control but also improve on it.

It will be recalled that there was a large seizure of cocaine at the TCIP where 14.2 metric tons of similar substance was intercepted in June 2006.

Ofoyeju Mitchell
Head, Public Affairs
08034088136
http://www.ndlea.gov.ng/v1/?q=content/4-billion-cocaine-chinese-suspects-faces-trial-nigeria-0

200 ton of precursor chemicals secured in Mexico

The Federal Government reports that derived from several coordinated actions between the Tax Administration Service, the Ministry of Marina-Armada de Mexico and the Attorney General of the Republic, which led to several preliminary investigations, were secured in the office of Manzanillo, Colima More than 200 tons of precursor chemicals.

The precursors were found in 18 containers from China and Korea which stored about 970 metal drums, which contained various substances known as Phenyl Ethyl Acetate, Phenyl Acetic Acid and Phenyl Ethyl Alcohol, among others.

These psychotropic substances are considered by the General Health Law and as a precursor chemical for the Federal Law for the Control of Precursor Chemicals, Commodity and Developing Machines for tablets and capsules or tablets.

It should be noted that this assurance is the most important that have been made to date in Mexico.

The substances were placed under the guardianship and custody of the Sixth Naval Region until ultimately determine their legal status.

These 200 tons are added to the 160 tons of the same merchandise insured 4 and May 19 this year and that together they could fill almost 35 containers that line would measure the equivalent of four times the length of a football field.

Such detections are made through strengthened security measures at customs, thus preventing illegal activities affecting the welfare and national security and is reflected interagency coordination among the authorities to strengthen the rule of law and ensure public safety throughout the country.

Los precursores fueron descubiertos en 18 contenedores provenientes de China y de Corea que almacenaban cerca de 970 tambos de metal, los cuales contenían diversas sustancias conocidas como Fenil Acetato de Etilo, Ácido Fenil Acético y Alcohol Fenil Etílico, entre otras.

Estas sustancias son consideradas como psicotrópicos por la Ley General de Salud y como precursor químico por la Ley Federal para el Control de Precursores Químicos, Productos Esenciales y Máquinas para Elaborar Cápsulas Tabletas y/o Comprimidos.

Cabe señalar que este aseguramiento es de los más importantes que se han realizado hasta la fecha en México.

Las sustancias quedaron bajo la guardia y custodia de la Sexta Región Naval hasta que se determine en definitiva su situación jurídica.

Estas 200 toneladas se suman a las 160 toneladas de la misma mercancía aseguradas el 4 y 19 de mayo de este año y que juntas pudieran llenar prácticamente 35 contenedores que en línea medirían el equivalente a cuatro veces el largo de una cancha de futbol.

Este tipo de detecciones se hacen gracias al reforzamiento de las medidas de seguridad en las aduanas, con lo cual se previenen actividades ilícitas que afectan el bienestar y la seguridad nacional y queda de manifiesto la coordinación interinstitucional entre las autoridades para fortalecer el Estado de Derecho y garantizar la seguridad pública en todo el país.
http://www.pgr.gob.mx/Prensa/2007/bol10/Ago/b93410.shtm

Luggage handlers in Puerto Rico charged with smuggling drugs aboard commercial flights

By: DANICA COTO
Associated Press
08/06/10 2:00 PM EDT
SAN JUAN, PUERTO RICO — Ground crews at Puerto Rico's largest airport were accused Friday of smuggling drug-laden suitcases aboard four major commercial airlines bound for the U.S.

The suspects worked for Ground Motive Dependable, a private company based in the U.S. Caribbean territory that provides ramp and baggage services to U.S. Airways, Delta, Continental and Jet Blue, said Waldo Santiago, a spokesman for the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration, which oversaw the investigation leading to the arrests.

The three men arrested allegedly stowed cocaine-stuffed suitcases in the airlines' cargo compartments and sometimes used tags stolen from properly checked luggage, Santiago said.

The workers were identified as Maximo Bencosme Aybar, Jorge Correa Osorio, and Victor de Leon Valverde. It was unclear if they had attorneys. Rodney Colon, GMD's executive vice president, said he did not know the arrested workers but planned to meet with personnel later Friday to improve security measures at the company.

Another three suspects unrelated to the company were arrested on suspicion that they served as drug mules aboard the flights. On average, each swallowed nearly 1 kilogram (2 lbs.) of heroin pellets in the Dominican Republic, traveled to Puerto Rico and then expelled them once they arrived in the U.S., Santiago said.

The couriers also were responsible for checking in drug-laden suitcases bound for New York and Philadelphia, he said.

The investigation, dubbed "Underground Ramp Rats," began in 2006 at San Juan's Luis Munoz Marin International Airport.

DEA agents had previously arrested 19 people with ties to the drug ring allegedly overseeing the smuggling operation and seized nearly 200 kilograms (440 lbs.) of cocaine and 1 kilogram (2.2 lbs.) of heroin. The agency did not announce those arrests or seizures at the time because the investigation was ongoing.

Agents believe the ring was capable of smuggling up to 200 kilograms (440 pounds) of cocaine and heroin every month from Puerto Rico to the U.S. Suspected ring leader Manuel Santana Cabrera, 44, is accused of running the organization from 2005 to 2007. He was arrested in April 2009.

Puerto Rico is considered the biggest drug-transshipment point in the Caribbean. As a U.S. territory, it draws traffickers because drugs sent to the U.S. do not have to clear customs.

Last year, nine employees of American Airlines were accused of participating in a smuggling ring that allegedly sent at least 9,000 kilograms (19,800 pounds) of cocaine aboard flights from Puerto Rico to the U.S. over a decade.

The workers involved in that were a mix of baggage handlers and other ground crew members.

http://www.washingtonexaminer.com/world/luggage-handlers-in-puerto-rico-charged-with-smuggling-drugs-aboard-commercial-flights-100133024.html

Cocaine found in buttons seized at Pearson

Last Updated: Saturday, August 7, 2010 | 1:36 PM ET
The Canadian Press
A woman travelling with thousands of buttons and fabric was arrested after the buttons were found laced with $1 million worth of cocaine, RCMP say.

Officials from the Canadian Border Service Agency arrested the woman at Toronto's Pearson Airport after becoming suspicious of the more than 3,000 large buttons being brought into the country from Barbados, RCMP said Friday.

Insp. Steve Saunders said police discovered about nine kilograms of cocaine inside the buttons.

Saunders says the seizure happened July 17, but information wasn't released because of an ongoing investigation.

http://www.cbc.ca/canada/toronto/story/2010/08/07/toronto-cocaine-buttons.html?ref=rss

German police smash global drug ring

August 4, 2010 - 10:19PM

AFP

German police said on Wednesday they had seized a shipment of 351 kilograms of cocaine worth millions of euros and smashed an international drug smuggling gang, making nine arrests in the process.

Experts estimated the black-market value of the pure cocaine, hidden in containers of sandstone and shipped to the northern German port of Hamburg from Paraguay via Argentina, at 11.4 million euros ($A16.54 million).

Customs officials in Hamburg were tipped off by colleagues in Hong Kong who discovered cocaine in a container exported from the sandstone factory in Paraguay.

Following raids last week, police arrested nine suspects aged between 20 and 56.

http://news.smh.com.au/breaking-news-world/german-police-smash-global-drug-ring-20100804-11fry.html



Mehr als 350 Kilo Kokain in Schiffscontainern entdeckt
(AFP) – Vor 6 Stunden

Hamburg — Polizei und Zoll haben in Norddeutschland 351 Kilogramm Kokain beschlagnahmt und einen internationalen Rauschgifthändlerring zerschlagen. Nach wochenlangen Vorbereitungen wurden vergangener Woche insgesamt acht Objekte unter anderem in Hamburg, Bremen und Nordrhein-Westfalen durchsucht sowie neun Verdächtige festgenommen, wie die Polizei in Hamburg mitteilte. Die Bande soll versucht haben, große Mengen reinsten Kokains per Schiff aus Paraguay nach Deutschland zu schmuggeln.

Die 351 Kilogramm der Droge waren in Containern mit Sandsteinen versteckt. Die Menge hat nach Angaben von Zollexperten einen Schwarzmarktwert von mindestens 14 Millionen Euro, im Verkauf an Endverbraucher werden sogar noch erheblich höhere Erlöse erzielt.

Durch die Aktion sei der Aufbau einer neuen Schmuggelroute von Südamerika nach Europa verhindert worden, teilte die Polizei mit. Für die Drogenfahnder in Hamburg war es bereits der zweite spektakuläre Erfolg innerhalb weniger Monate. Mitte April hatten Polizei und Zoll im Hamburger Hafen die Rekordmenge von 1,33 Tonnen Kokain in einer Containerladung Holzbriketts entdeckt. Dies war der größte Einzelfund, den es in Deutschland jemals gab. Auch der damaligen Aktion war eine monatelange Beobachtungs- und Ermittlungsaktion vorausgegangen.

Die jetzt zerschlagene Bande hatte das Kokain in Lieferungen aus einer Sandsteinfabrik in Paraguay versteckt und über Argentinien nach Hamburg geschmuggelt. Die Hamburger Rauschgiftfahnder wurden durch einen Tipp ihrer Hongkonger Kollegen aufmerksam, die Kokain in einem Container aus der südamerikanischen Fabrik entdeckt hatten. Daraufhin fanden die Beamten auch in zwei nach Hamburg verschickten Steinlieferungen Kokain und bereiteten die Festnahme der Beteiligten sowie die Durchsuchung der von ihnen genutzten Objekte vor. Gegen vier Männer hatten sie schon vorher Haftbefehle erwirkt.

Bei der Aktion gingen ihnen auch einige mutmaßliche Mitorganisatoren der Drogentransporte ins Netz. Dazu zählte ein 53-jähriger Deutscher aus Dinslaken in Nordrhein-Westfalen, der die Container in Empfang nahm, in einer Lagerhalle in Bremerhaven unterbrachte und wiederholt Kontakt zu den Fabrikeigentümern in Paraguay aufnahm. Zudem schnappten sie zwei Paraguayer im Alter von 20 und 35 Jahren sowie einen 35-jährigen Argentinier, die offenbar das Kokain übernehmen sollten.

http://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5hpZCXrw9PYc20G5v_LydwacYhAFw

Polizei Hamburg und Zollfahndungsamt Hamburg zerschlagen international agierenden Kokainhändlerring - 351 Kilogramm Kokain sichergestellt

04.08.2010 | 10:01 Uhr
POL-HH: 100804-1. Einladung zum Pressetermin
Hamburg (ots) - Zeit: Heute, 04.08.2010, 13.00 Uhr
Ort: Hmb.-Alsterdorf, Polizeipräsidium, Bruno Georges Platz 1 Großer Sitzungssaal

Zeit: 29.07.2010, ab 15:35 Uhr
Orte: Hmb.-Waltershof, Terminal Waltershof-Burchardkai; Bremerhaven, Grauwaldring (Lagerhalle); Bremerhaven, Hafenstraße (Ferienwohnung); Dinslaken, Wilmastraße; Bremen, Bahnhofsplatz (Hotel); Basel, Schweizergasse und Hmb.-Ottensen, Otawiweg
Die Fahnder des Rauschgiftdezernates ermitteln mit Unterstützung des Zollfahndungsamtes Hamburg - EG Hafen - und in enger Zusammenarbeit mit der Staatsanwaltschaft Hamburg seit Juni 2010 gegen eine Tätergruppierung, die unter Verdacht steht, Kokain aus Paraguay über Argentinien nach Deutschland zu schmuggeln. Am 29.07.2010 wurden zeitgleich acht Objekte durchsucht und neun Tatverdächtige im Alter von 20 bis 56 Jahren mit bereits bestehenden Haftbefehlen verhaftet bzw. vorläufig festgenommen. Die Ermittlungen dauern noch an.
Die Fahnder erhielten einen Hinweis, nach dem in Hongkong in einem Container, der aus Hamburg weiterverschifft worden war, 70 Kilogramm Kokain gefunden wurden. Das Rauschgift war in einer Ladung von Sandsteinen versteckt worden. Die Behörden in Hongkong verhafteten in diesem Zusammenhang einen 19-jährigen Paraguayer, der die Sendung in Hongkong in Empfang nehmen sollte, bei dem Versuch, auszureisen.
Die Ermittler fanden heraus, dass sich drei Container dieses Absenders aus Paraguay bereits in Hamburg befanden und weitere auf dem Weg nach Hamburg waren. Die drei hier befindlichen Container wurden ergebnislos durchsucht. Empfänger der Container waren ein 24-jähriger in Bolivien geborener deutscher Staatsangehöriger aus Hamburg und ein 53-jähriger Deutscher aus Dinslaken. Der fünfte Container traf am 27. 06. 2010 in Hamburg ein und wurde von den Ermittlungsbeamten untersucht. Versteckt in einer Ladung Sandstein fanden die Beamten 161 Pakete mit jeweils einem Kilogramm Kokain. Das Rauschgift war aufwendig in mehrere Lagen Kunststofffolie eingepackt und ähnelte dadurch der Ladung Sandsteine. Das Kokain wurde sichergestellt und operative Maßnahmen eingeleitet.
Am 02. und 03. 07. 2010 holte der 53-Jährige jeweils eine Person am Flughafen Schiphol/Amsterdam ab. Hierbei handelte es sich um Männer aus Paraguay, 20 und 35 Jahre alt. Der 53-Jährige brachte die beiden zunächst in einem Hotel und später in einer Ferienwohnung in Bremerhaven unter, anschließend mietete er eine Lagerhalle in Bremerhaven an. Die Fahnder stellten fest, dass der 53-Jährige mehrfach Kontakte zu den Inhabern der Sandsteinfabrik in Paraguay hatte. Haupteigentümer ist ein 64-jähriger Deutscher, ein 33-jähriger Paraguayer gilt als Miteigentümer. Aus den Kontakten wurde deutlich, dass der 53-Jährige die Aufgabe hatte, die Container aus dem Hafen in die Lagerhalle zu schaffen. Die beiden Paraguayer sollten das Kokain aus den Containern an Abnehmer liefern.
Zwischenzeitlich waren zwei weitere Container im Hamburger Hafen angekommen. Die Beamten hatten mittlerweile gegen den 53-Jährigen, die beiden mutmaßlichen Mittäter aus Paraguay und einen weiteren 35-jährigen Argentinier aus dem Abnehmerkreis Haftbefehle erwirkt. In einem der Container stellten die Fahnder 190 Kilogramm Kokain sicher. Die Container wurden von einer Spedition im Auftrag des 53-Jährigen nach Bremerhaven geschafft. Am 29. 07. 2010 schlugen die Fahnder zu. Beamte des Mobilen Einsatzkommandos vollstreckten die vier vorliegenden Haftbefehle und nahmen fünf weitere Personen vorläufig fest. Diese fünf Personen, die als Abnehmer der Ware ermittelt werden konnten, wurden dem Amtsgericht Hamburg zugeführt und die Staatsanwaltschaft beantragte gegen drei Personen Haftbefehle. Ein Haftbefehl gegen einen 51-jährigen spanischen Staatsbürger kolumbianischer Herkunft wurde erlassen.
Zwischenzeitlich haben die Untersuchungen ergeben, dass es sich bei dem sichergestellten Kokain um Ware mit extrem hohen Reinheitsgehalt handelt. Mit der Zerschlagung dieser Gruppierung gelang es den Beamten der Polizei, des Zollfahndungsamtes und der Staatsanwaltschaft den Aufbau eines neuen Drogenlieferweges nach Europa bereits in der Entstehung zu unterbinden.
Sw.
Rückfragen bitte an:

Polizei Hamburg
Polizeipressestelle, PÖA 1
Ulrike Sweden
Telefon: 040/4286-56210
Fax: 040/4286-56219
E-Mail: polizeipressestelle@polizei.hamburg.de
www.polizei.hamburg.de http://www.presseportal.de/polizeipresse/pm/6337/1659080/polizei_hamburg

Cocaine: NDLEA places Tin Can port on red alert

Written by Shola Adekola, Lagos Wednesday, 04 August 2010

The Chairman of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA), Alhaji Ahmadu Giade, has ordered a high-powered surveillance on another suspected cocaine container, belonging to the Chinese drug suspects under investigation.

Agency investigation into the unlawful importation of 450.400kg of cocaine revealed that there was yet another container imported by the Chinese suspects.

Documents recovered from the suspects confirmed the importation of the second container into the country by another ship. The shipment was successfully tracked by the agency in collaboration with the British Serious Organised Crime Agency (SOCA) and United States Drug Enforcement Agency and found to have arrived Tin Can Island Port, Lagos.

According to the NDLEA boss, the container will be publicly examined at the port in collaboration with other security and government agencies.

He said:“The discovery was due to diligent investigation on the case involving the 450.400kg of cocaine seizure worth over N4 billion. We are going to examine the container publicly at the port in the presence of other security officials.”
http://www.tribune.com.ng/index.php/news/9173-cocaine-ndlea-places-tin-can-port-on-red-alert

Anti-narcotics agency identifies another suspected cocaine container in Lagos

The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) on Tuesday commenced surveillance on
another suspected cocaine container belonging to the Chinese drug suspects arrested last week in Lagos.

According to the anti-narcotics agency, investigation into the unlawful importation of
the 450.4kg of cocaine by the Chinese suspects revealed that there was yet another container imported by them.

“Documents recovered from the suspects confirmed the importation of the second container into the country by another ship,” said Ahmadu Giade, chief
executive of the agency.

Mr. Giade disclosed that the shipment was successfully tracked by the agency in collaboration with the British Serious Organised Crime Agency (SOCA),
and the United States Drug Enforcement Agency and was found to have arrived Tin Can Island Port, Lagos.

The anti-drug peddling boss said that the container will be publicly examined at the port in collaboration with other security and government agencies.

“The discovery was due to diligent investigation on the case involving the 450.4kg of cocaine seizure worth over N4 billion. We are going to examine the
container publicly at the port in the presence of other security officials,” he said. “The said container has been rated by the
anti-narcotic Agency as high risk and will be given 100 percent physical examination.”

No politician involved

Mitchell Ofoyeju, spokesperson for the agency said that, so far no politician has been linked to the unlawful importation, and that the claims on the bill of
laden that a politician has hands in the deal is false.

According to him, the first cocaine container was imported with a bill of laden bearing one “Honourable Mike Njoku of No. 4 Balogun Street, Maryland Lagos.”
The agency’s spokesperson disclosed that the address was found to be fake as there is no Balogun Street in Maryland.

“However, the consignee’s telephone number given on the shipping document was that of one of the Chinese suspects. The bill of laden also states that the
first container contained personal effects,” he said.

Two Chinese business men, Richard Wang, 62; and Chiusen Fong, 54; in collaboration with a Nigerian clearing agent, Inua Mohammed, 56; are being detained
by the NDLEA following the cocaine seizure of last week.

Meanwhile, the clearing agent denied knowing that the container is stashed with cocaine.

“I am a clearing agent. Richard Wang came to me to clear a container. He told me the container contained cigarettes and gave me N3 million for the
clearance. It was after my boys cleared it out of the port that NDLEA officers intercepted them,” he said in a statement from the agency.

http://nigeriang.com/2010/08/04/newstoday/anti-narcotics-agency-identifies-another-suspected-cocaine-container-in-lagos/

Venezuela drug trade booms

Updated 7/21/2010 3:21 AM

By Chris Hawley, USA TODAY

MEXICO CITY — Shortly after Mother's Day in the African city of Monrovia, Liberia, drug smugglers gathered to plan massive cocaine shipments across the Atlantic Ocean, according to a recently unsealed U.S. indictment.

One 4-ton shipment was coming on a jetliner. Another ton and a half would cross on a propeller plane, tons more by ship. The shipments were bound for Russia, Europe and Ghana, with some eventually going to New York. But they were all coming from one place: Venezuela.

Drug smuggling through Venezuela has exploded since President Hugo Chávez severed contacts with U.S. law enforcement agencies in 2005, U.S. and United Nations officials say in reports.

"I think (Chávez) has totally lost control over the traffickers," said Anthony Maingot, an expert on Caribbean security issues at Florida International University.

The extent of Chávez's involvement in the drug trade is in question. He has been seizing businesses and prodding Latin nations to turn to socialism as his regime grapples with a significant loss of revenue tied to the drop in the price of Venezuela's main legal export: oil.

"Parts of the Venezuelan military are probably trafficking with drugs and other stuff, and Chávez is not exactly motivated to crack down on them because he needs the military," says Vanda Felbab-Brown, a fellow at the Brookings Institution, a Washington think tank. "He is allowing them to dabble in the trade."

The May drug deal in Monrovia was foiled by U.S. and Liberian undercover agents, according to indictments unsealed this month in a New York federal court. Other traffickers, though, are still moving billions of dollars' worth of cocaine via the same route.

Venezuela now accounts for 41% of all cocaine shipments to Europe, the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime said in a June 23 report. In the Caribbean, the United States has reported a rise in flights leaving Venezuela and suspected of dropping U.S.-bound drug shipments in Haiti, the Dominican Republic and Honduras.

Under-the-radar deals

The Venezuelan government says it is arresting traffickers and installing radar systems to track drug flights. Last week, it extradited three Colombians to the United States to face drug charges.

Despite that, the U.N. agency said the drug-trafficking situation "appears to be deteriorating" in Venezuela.

Most of the world's cocaine comes from Colombia, according to the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration. But it has become harder for the traffickers to get their drugs to the coast because the Colombian army along with U.S. assistance has been successful in rounding up members of FARC, a violent leftist group that supports itself with drug proceeds.

So smugglers are using small airplanes to make short flights over the Colombian-Venezuelan border, usually skimming less than 300 feet over the treetops, said Javier Mayorca, a Venezuelan crime expert. From there, the drugs are shipped all over the world, according to the United Nations. Some are put on ships in Venezuela. Others are flown from airstrips in Venezuela's Apure state to "drop zones" in the Caribbean Sea, where ships or speedboats pick them up, the U.N. says.

From 2006 to 2008, half of all ships caught with cocaine in the Atlantic Ocean had departed from Venezuela, compared with only 5% from Colombia, according to the United Nations.

"The (long-distance) transport operations have moved completely to Venezuela," Mayorca said.

In November, smugglers flew a Boeing 727 from Venezuela, landed it in the desert in Mali, unloaded it and set it ablaze. In April, the African nation of Sierra Leone extradited six men — two of them Venezuelan — to face U.S. charges of using planes to fly drugs from Venezuela.

In the plot discovered in May, smugglers had planned to fly an Ilyushin-76, a Russian-made airliner, and an Antonov 12, a four-engine propeller plane, from Venezuela to Monrovia.

The cocaine was to be divided up and taken to Russia, Europe and other African countries. Part of the shipment was to be flown from Ghana to New York, according to the U.S. indictment.

'Neglect of public security'

Trafficking surged in Venezuela in 2005 after Chávez ordered police and the military to sever most ties with the U.S. law enforcement agencies, said Shannon O'Neil, a Latin America expert at the Council on Foreign Relations, a New York-based think tank.

Chávez had accused the U.S. agents of conducting "illegal activities" and said Venezuela was capable of handling its own law enforcement. In 2006, Venezuela also scaled back police ties with its neighbors by withdrawing from the Andean Community, a group of South American countries.

The United States has tried to compensate by conducting anti-drug flights out of Aruba, Curacao and Colombia, but Venezuela's refusal to cooperate makes it hard to investigate, O'Neil said.

The Venezuelan government says it has been working hard to stem the flow of drugs. It has installed at least six Chinese-made radar systems to track flights, and says it plans to start scanning shipping containers with equipment donated by the U.S. government in 2006. Some doubt whether Chávez is really going after traffickers.

"There seems to be a general neglect of public security in Venezuela, and not enough cases of infiltration by organized crime being punished," said Adam Isacson, a security expert at the Washington Office on Latin America.

That could lead to a situation like in Mexico, where the government is fighting a bloody and expensive battle against traffickers who have become powerful enough to hire their own armies. "The worst thing you can do is not recognize the magnitude of the problem," Mayorca says.



http://www.usatoday.com/news/world/2010-07-21-venezueladrugs21_ST_N.htm

80 kilos of cocaine found in Chinese ship anchored in Lake Maracaibo

August 2nd, 2010
The head of the Regional Command 3, Major General of the Bolivarian National Guard (GNB) Julio Alberto Yepez Castro, said this afternoon the discovery of 63 panels of alleged cocaine on a boat that was moored China - subject to the fund through weights or -anchor on the shores of Lake Maracaibo.

According to the report, the Chinese-flagged ship, called Jin Yao, pertains specifically to the province of Hong Kong, but came from Spain, and on Thursday arrived in the waters of the lake and continue to load coal bound for Holland. However, its objective is not settlement.

In hours of Monday morning more troops assigned to Regional Anti-Drug Unit, with support from Coastal Surveillance Detachment 903, divers and dogs drug, made an inspection before the ship sailed, he had already charged 42 000 tonnes of coal, and found in the underwater, particularly in the tunnel of the rudder, eight waterproof container containing 63 panels of suspected cocaine, according to general Yepez Castro said.

After the evaluation experts will executed the 63 panels of cocaine, it was determined that a gross weight of 80.154 kilograms.

"The procedure was reported to the Public Ministry (MP), and Dr. Evita Quiroga, fiscal 24 on drugs in the judicial district of Zulia, is conducting their respective investigations," Yepez Castro detailed.

He added that so far detained 24 crew members are Chinese nationals, 17 stevedores (workers who take care of loading and unloading of a ship), of which 16 are Venezuelan and one Colombian and three employees of the shipping company. They are in the order of the MP, which will perform the appropriate investigations.

He noted that the National Guard in conjunction with the security of the state, MP and judicial authorities, "demonstrate this procedure total and overwhelming battle that has the Bolivarian government in denying international drug mafias use of our platform, ports and roads to carry the drug product harmful to other latitudes. "

"It's the first time this boat touches Venezuelan port, and is not a fortuitous event, the review is done constantly," he added.


At 7.00 tonight still ongoing revision work on the craft to rule out that there were more drugs hidden in another section. We investigate whether cocaine was placed in Zulia or arrived with her.

This finding comes five months after a similar, because in February it was reported on the seizure of 100 kilograms of cocaine in the underwater Turkish ship remained on the East Coast of the Lake (COL).

Balance

Yepez Castro General also reported that in the first six months of the year have seized 37.5 tons of drugs, of which 5.22 have been due to the specific work of the GN, in turn have seized over 10 tons of chemical precursors are used to produce them, they arrested 435 people and 14 members of drug trafficking mafias who were deported.
Jin Yao

IMO: 9294214
Flag: Hong Kong
Reg. Owner: Jinyao Marine Inc.
Type: Bulk Carrier

Marijuana Encased in Cement Seized by CBP

(Monday, July 26, 2010)

San Diego — U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers at the Otay Mesa port cargo facility stopped a suspected drug smuggler’s attempt on Saturday to transport across the border more than 425 pounds of marijuana concealed inside a shipment of concrete lawn furniture.

Officers inspected the tractor-trailer and its contents of several pallets loaded with concrete furniture after it entered the port from Mexico at around 12:15 p.m.

A narcotic detector dog alerted to the trailer, which led officers to investigate further.Officers broke into a section of the concrete furniture and discovered a package of marijuana.After a complete inspection, officers removed 122 packages valued at almost $213,000 encased inside the items.

Andy Brinton, acting director of field operations in San Diego CBP said, “Drug smugglers continue to be more desperate and deceptive in their attempts to bring illicit drugs into our country for sale within our communities.This seizure demonstrates our officers’ ability to stop these drugs at the ports while maintaining the flow of legitimate commerce.”

CBP seized the tractor-trailer and drugs and turned over the suspected smuggler, a 45-year-old Mexican male, to agents of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.\

http://www.cbp.gov/xp/cgov/newsroom/news_releases/local/07262010_4.xml

Customs link in smugglers' $17m P plot

A Customs broker has been charged with helping smuggle drugs worth up to $17 million in machine parts arriving at Auckland International Airport.
Bo "Kevin" Niu appeared in Auckland District Court this week charged with possession and supply of the class C drug pseudoephedrine, the main ingredient in methamphetamine, or P.

The 27-year-old was committed to stand trial with co-accused students Lei "Aaron" Chen, Yixiang "Ethan" Zhang and Tong "Ivan" Liu and will appear in court again next month.

Working at a Customs brokerage firm near the airport, Niu was allegedly the only staff member working with EJ Trading Ltd which imported 145kg of machinery parts from Hong Kong in March.

Police say Niu took the machine parts before they could be examined by Customs Service officers, removed approximately 10kg of ContacNT - cold medicine from China which contains pseudoephedrine. He then allegedly returned the empty parts, stainless steel axles, to be checked by border control.

But the following day, Customs staff allegedly found 50 grams of loose ContacNT granules in the packages. Nothing was mentioned to Niu and the name EJ Trading Ltd was put on an alert system by Customs so following imports could be watched.





Ten days later, the alleged drug syndicate shipped 135kg of machine parts - 10kg less than all the previous imports - which was covertly searched by Customs. Nothing was found and Operation Warbird detectives decided it was a decoy, so police followed Lei Chen when he picked the package up.

He was tailed back to his Mt Roskill home, where co-accused Yixiang Zhan and Ton Liu also lived. A week later, a third shipment weighing 145kg arrived for EJ Trading from Hong Kong, another a fortnight later on April 15, then another a week later.

Due to the eruption of a volcano in Iceland that disrupted flights around the world, the final shipment was delayed by one day - which a staff member from EJ Trading allegedly did not believe when calling the broker.

Customs officers found 10kg of ContacNT hidden inside the metal cylinders and decided to conduct a controlled delivery to the alleged drug syndicate.

Police allegedly found the drugs in Chen's car.

Customs records show that EJ Trading made 28 similar imports of 145kg of machine parts - allegedly with 10kg of drugs hidden inside - between April 2009 and 2010.

Police allege 320kg of pseudoephedrine was smuggled over 12 months, with an estimated street value of $11 to $17 million.

http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=10662525

Intercepted at sea a sailboat with the largest cache of cocaine from Colombia via Morocco

03/07/2010

Intercepted at sea a sailboat with the largest cache of cocaine from Colombia via Morocco

With the arrest of 10 people given by the Civil Guard dismantled an international organization carrying drug from Colombia to Spain in boats that passed through the coast of Morocco

For the intercept the yacht "Lulu" was necessary collaboration with the Tax Office, which conducted the boarding his boat SACRE

The Civil Guard under Operation MAR DEL SUR ", developed in Tenerife, Melilla, Malaga and Almeria have seized 2666 kilos of cocaine after intercepting a vessel offshore Spanish flag which sailed from the island of Tenerife , to meet another mother ship from South America, being the final destination of the cargo Europe via Morocco. It is the largest cache of cocaine that was trying to be introduced in this way and one of the most important of recent years.

With the arrest of 10 people (7 of Spanish nationality, a German, a Uruguayan and a Lithuanian), the Civil Guard assumes dismantled an international organization carrying high-purity drugs from Colombia to the European continent.

The investigations were launched late last year, after the analysis of various documents seized to other drug trafficking organizations, as well as other information received in the Civil Guard.

Through this analysis, it was determined that an organization dedicated to drug trafficking from North Africa and the Spanish coast, was organizing the transfer of large quantities of cocaine by sea from South America to Europe

After initial investigations, the officers were able to establish that the head of the organization and his deputy had moved to a South American country to organize the dispatch of a large quantity of cocaine destined for Europe.

On his return to Spain held numerous meetings and travel with others, looking for different places of the Canary Islands the ideal place to introduce the drug.

Then the leader of the organization made a new trip to South America, where it already materialized the way to introduce cocaine. Also traveled to a European Union country to find the necessary funding and contacted his return to Spain with a pattern of vessels based in Malaga.

Mother ship 500 miles from El Hierro

Following investigations, officers learned that the shipment of drugs from offshore to the coast would be done by several people with known expertise in the trafficking of hashish by inflatable boats, for which, this time, acquired a sailing vessel type, flag and name Spanish Lulu, who conditioned for a long journey.

Once we know the boat to use, workload focused on knowing the people involved with it, and the movements they could make, discovered that the June 20 sailing the boat started, leaving Tenerife and taking to the sur- west. At about 500 miles from El Hierro, in its fourth day on the water could make the transfer from a mother ship.

The organization had planned to introduce the drug later on the coast of Morocco, using fast boats that would come out to meet the boat, and later move it to Europe through the Iberian Peninsula, using the infrastructure already available for the introduction of hashish.

Boarding the yacht Lulu

Then started up the protocols for coordination with the various police and other services in order to carry out the nearest boat approach and involvement of the drug.

On the night of 28th of June the ship SACRE name of the tax made the approach to Lulu, which involved 93 bales, suspected to be cocaine. Then the boat was escorted to the port of Santa Cruz de Tenerife, where he arrived on yesterday.

Meanwhile, on land under the same operation, with the boat and arrested, they launched a coordinated police presence in the provinces of Tenerife, Almería, Málaga and the autonomous city of Melilla, in order to make the arrests other members of the organization and practice for house searches.

Stopped and searched

In the operational phase of the operation have been arrested ten people, seven Spanish nationals, a German, a Uruguayan and a Lithuanian.

Also there have been seven house searches, two in Almeria 1 Malaga 2, Tenerife and 2 in Melilla.

In the operation underwent surgery the following effects:

- 2666 kilos of cocaine.

- 1280 kilos of hashish.

- A vessel of 14 meters length

- A pistol with ammunition

- A banknote counting machine

- Five high-end vehicles.

- Two satellite phones

- A seagoing GPS Plotter

- Plenty of documentation, which is being analyzed by researchers

Another 118 have been blocked banking products, a lot of credit and debit cards as well as 7 and 4 properties in Almeria Melilla.

The operation conducted by the Magistrate's Court No.. Two of La Laguna (Tenerife), has been carried out by the Task Force on Organized Crime and Drug Enforcement (EDOA) of the Commander of the Guardia Civil de Tenerife and the Team Against Organized Crime (ECO) of the Central Operational Unit of the Corps, based in Tenerife, with the support of the tax and the various units of the Guardia Civil of the places where they have conducted the proceedings.


There are pictures of the operation in the Press Office of the Civil Guard (C / Guzmán el Bueno 110, Madrid). There are also pictures on the page www.guardiacivil.es

Ukraine Law Enforcement Officers Seize Biggest Haul of Cocaine on Record

By Daryna Krasnolutska and Kateryna Choursina - Jul 5, 2010
Officers, security service employees and border guards have seized 582 kilograms of cocaine, the biggest haul ever in the country.

The cocaine was hidden among scrap metal pipes used for drilling, the Kiev-based State Customs Service said in an e- mailed statement today. Bohdan Panas, the spokesman of Ukraine’s southern customs, wasn’t available on his office phone when called today to clarify the date of the seizure.

The scrap metal was being transported to Ukraine from Bolivia, which led custom officials to hold an additional inspection. An X-ray didn’t show the narcotics, which were found after a pipe with two additional layers inside was sliced, according to the statement.

Last week, Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych called on law enforcement bodies to take “drastic measures” to tackle illegal drugs circulation. He gave officials from prosecution and the health ministry two months to propose legal changes to protect the country from being “ruined” by drug sales.

Another 152 kilograms of the drug was detained in Odessa on June 30, according to the statement.

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2010-07-05/ukraine-law-enforcement-officers-seize-biggest-haul-of-cocaine-on-record.html

http://www.customs.gov.ua/dmsu/control/uk/publish/article;jsessionid=883143AF4BB6930C2095A3A6B1F5C0EC?art_id=2016250&cat_id=295923

http://www.dmsu.customs.gov.ua/text/1610.html

Two tonnes of cocaine found in coffee bags

Lima, July 25: Around two tonnes of cocaine camouflaged among sacks of coffee meant to be shipped to Europe were seized in Peru, police said.

Peruvian police launched an operation Friday and seized the narcotics, and also dismantled a drug cartel. Over 250,000 pills of party drug ecstasy, which the cartel was about to send to Mexico, were also seized, police said Saturday.

Eight people of Peruvian nationality have been detained for their alleged involvement in the case, police said, adding that the drug cartel consists of Colombian and Dutch nationals also.

The two tonnes of cocaine were hidden in a container in Callao port, ready to be sent to Holland disguised as Peruvian coffee.

On July 17, police seized 30 kg of cocaine hidden in an SUV fuel tank, meant to be sent to Spain.

Peru is the world's biggest producer of coca leaf and the second biggest producer of cocaine after Colombia.

http://www.newkerala.com/news2/fullnews-7073.html

A taxi driver died after unwittingly drinking pure liquid cocaine from a rum bottle given to him as a gift, a court heard.

Lascell Malcolm, 63, was given the bottle of Bounty Rum by a friend,
Antoinette Corlis, after declining payment for a lift home after her
Caribbean holiday. She had been given the bottle by a friend, Michael
Lawrence, who was carrying it to the UK from St Lucia for acquaintance
Martin Newman, Croydon crown court heard.

Only Newman, 50, knew there was 246g (8.7oz) of pure cocaine dissolved
into the alcohol, the court in south London was told. He allegedly had
given two bottles to Lawrence before flying to Gatwick airport,
claiming his baggage was overweight. He intended to retrieve the
bottles upon arrival, but was detained by Customs officers, the court
heard. Lawrence left for a connecting flight to his home in
Switzerland, giving one of the bottles to Corlis.

Oliver Glasgow, prosecuting, told the court: "Corlis, unaware of the
dangers posed by the defendant's bottle of rum, decided to give it to
Lascell Malcolm as a thank you -- It was gratefully received.

"Corlis was only to realise the full import of what she had done when
she tried to contact Lascell Malcolm over the following days."

Malcolm, a father-of-two from Haringey, north London, had drunk a shot
of the rum with a pint of Guinness, hours after Corlis gave him the
bottle on 25 May last year. At 4am the next day, he called emergency
services telling them he could not walk and had a headache.

He was discharged from hospital but later collapsed and died after a
heart attack brought on by cocaine poisoning.

Spain finds 11 tons of hashish in sardine shipments

Tuesday, 13th July 2010 - 12:54CET

AFP

Police and customs agents have dismantled a drug smuggling operation in southern Spain and seized 11 tons of hashish hidden in a shipment of frozen sardines, the interior ministry said.

The investigators found the 11,100 kilos (24,420 pounds) of the drug shortly after the shipment of sardines arrived in the port of Algeciras, one of Spain's busiest, it said in a statement.

Police detained five Spanish nationals as part of the operation, blocked 38 bank accounts and seized 240,000 euros (300,000 dollars) in cash as well as several vehicles and seven flats.

The port of Algeciras is the main embarkation point between Spain and Tangier and other ports in Morocco, a major producer of hashish.

Spain is the main gateway to Europe hashish from neighbouring Morocco, and the police regularly carry out large seizures.

http://www.timesofmalta.com/articles/view/20100713/world-news/spain-finds-11-tons-of-hashish-in-sardine-shipments

Several dozen bundles of marijuana recovered from oil tanker

July 12, 2010
A trail of sticky black grease led police to an oil tanker in East Los Angeles that was hiding a stash of marijuana bundles weighing in at up to 50 pounds each, authorities said Monday.

The incident began Sunday night when Los Angeles Police Department officers attempted to stop a speeding vehicle near the train tracks around Union Pacific Avenue. The three suspects sped off and got away, prompting officers to set up a perimeter, authorities said.

When the suspects were found, officers noticed an oily substance on their pants. The same gunk was on several bundles of marijuana found in their vehicle.

"So the officers start looking around, and they find an oil tanker," LAPD Det. Gus Villanueva said.

The grease coated the railroad car, which was parked near the tracks around Union Pacific Avenue and Eastman Avenue. As of noon Monday, the Los Angeles Fire Department had recovered 38 additional bundles of marijuana from the tanker.


Authorities say there is more marijuana, but they had to take a break from searching the tanker because a suspicious object was found and the bomb squad was called in.
Villanueva said it was unclear whether the suspects were stashing the drugs in the tanker after the pursuit or if they were recovering a cache stored there.

A dollar value on the marijuana was not available, but police said there were dozens of bundles.

-- Robert Faturechi

Photo: L.A. County and city firefighters confer at the Union Pacific rail yard in the City of Commerce after dozens of bundles of marijuana were found in a tanker. Credit: Christina House / For The Times

http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/lanow/2010/07/several-dozen-bundles-of-marijuana-recovered-from-oil-tanker.html

THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT SECURES SEVEN TONS CHEMICAL PRECURSORS BY OPERATION OF JOINT IN MANZANILLO, COLIMA

México, D. F., 16 de Julio de 2010


As a result of coordinated work between the Tax Administration Service, the Ministry of Marina-Armada de Mexico and the Attorney General of the Republic, in Manzanillo, Colima, were secured seven tons of phenyl ethyl acetate, detected in the Office of Manzanillo.
The chemical precursor was transported in metal drums 35 of about 200 pounds each, inside the container NYKU 7,009,668, which manifests as consolidated cargo. The seven tons of phenyl ethyl acetate came aboard the ship "Nyk Joanna", which arrived at the port of Manzanillo on June 6, from Shanghai, China.
This assurance was recorded when elements of the Sixth Naval Region, to the Centre for Attention Unified Incident Maritime and Port (cumare), in coordination with personnel from the Maritime Customs of Manzanillo, the prosecutor of the Federation and staff Expert Services of the PGR, they proceeded to the opening of the tank suspected of containing illegal material.
Consequently, the Social Representative of the Federation opened preliminary AP/PGR/COL/MAN-II/063/2010 against the person or persons responsible of crimes against health, while the substance was placed under guard of the Navy of Mexico .
Such detections are made through strengthened security measures at customs, thus preventing illegal activities affecting the welfare and national security.

ftp://ftp2.sat.gob.mx/asistencia_servicio_ftp/publicaciones/boletines/com2010_104.pdf

RM1.25mil worth of drugs found in thermos ware

Saturday July 24, 2010
By SYED AZHAR
newsdesk@thestar.com.my


KOTA BARU: The Customs department here seized RM1.25mil worth of syabu following the arrest of a software engineer from India.

The synthetic drugs, believed to be from India, were retrieved from the 26-year-old at the Sultan Ismail Petra Airport here on Thursday.

State Customs director Salleh Mohd said the drugs were hidden in two thermos ware.

“The thermos ware was filled with food but that did not fool my officers,” he said.

“They seized the containers for a thorough check as they suspected something amiss.

“Our officer drilled a hole in the thermos and out came a white crystal-like substance that was hidden in its walls,” he said, adding that the engineer was picked up shortly after the Kuala Lumpur flight touched down at 11.30am.

Salleh said the engineer was detained and handed over to the police who were investigating the case under Section 39B of the Dangerous Drugs Act.

“There seems to be a new trend by drug traffickers ­­— using transit flights to domestic destinations in Malaysia.

“In this case, the suspect flew in from Bangalore and booked a connecting flight from Kuala Lumpur to Kota Baru to ensure the luggage ended up in Kota Baru, and not the KLIA,” he said.

He added that the case was similar to another where a 50-year-old In­­dian national was caught with 13.5kg of ketamine worth RM243,000 at the same airport last year.

At the press conference, Salleh said that his enforcement unit had also seized 30kg of ganja worth RM75,000 in Pengkalan Kubor on July 20.

He said the drug was brought in from a neighbouring country and that the ganja was hidden in the spare tyre of a car.

A Thai national has been detained for questioning.

http://thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=/2010/7/24/nation/6729780&sec=nation

Nigerian authorities seize 450 kg of cocaine

Published: 6:58 AM 07/27/2010


ABUJA, Nigeria (AP) — Nigeria’s drug enforcement agency says it has seized nearly half a ton of cocaine and has arrested two Chinese nationals and a Nigerian in connection with the seizure.

The agency says the 450 kilograms (some 990 pounds) of cocaine was found in a container Monday in Nigeria’s commercial capital, Lagos.

It originated from Chile and passed through Peru, Bolivia and Antwerp in Belgium before being shipped to Nigeria, the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency says in a statement.

The agency says it was able to make the seizures based on the work of undercover agents. It also says this is the second-largest seizure since one in 2006 that netted 14.2 tons of cocaine.

http://dailycaller.com/2010/07/27/nigerian-authorities-seize-450-kg-of-cocaine/

NDLEA intercepts N4b cocaine in Lagos
Jul 27, 2010
By Albert Akpor
LAGOS— NATIONAL Drug Law Enforcement Agency, NDLEA, yesterday, said it had intercepted a container load of substance suspected to be cocaine.
The container, marked CMA CGM, ECM 78299-8, 22 GI, arrived the country via the Tin Can Island Port Apapa, Lagos, weekend, and was reportedly cleared promptly.
Vanguard learnt that the attention of plain clothed NDLEA operatives who were monitoring the clearance was aroused and they promptly trailed it to an undisclosed warehouse in Orile-Iganmu in Apapa where they demanded to know the content.

Apparently realising that the game was up, the agent was said to have called an unnamed Chinese industrialist at Ibadan informing him that men of the Nigerian Customs were demanding for additional N4million and he promptly arrived with the cash.

The Chinese was reportedly arrested. Not wanting to go down alone, the Chinese also called his partner-in-crime in Kano State, informing him that Customs men were still demanding for additional N1million to release the container.

The partner also flew in with the cash, and into the waiting hands of NDLEA officials.

Vanguard gathered that the two foreign industrialists were, yesterday, still briefing the anti-drug agency about their respective involvement in the illicit trafficking.

The drug which was masterly concealed in customized plywood used as floors and packed in the containers weighed 450.4 kgs; with its street value put at a whopping N4billion.

Chairman of the anti-drug agency, Alhaji Ahmadu Giade, who was flanked by his Director-General, Otunba Laren Ipinmisho, told newsmen at the Shaw Road, Ikoyi, head office of the agency that the present seizure was the second largest in the annals of the agency.

Security reports

He said that operatives had received security reports about the movement of the vessel which carried the particular container and had patiently kept watch at the port.

It will be recalled that similar quantity weighing 14.2 tons was equally seized at the same port in 2006.

NDLEA chairman said: “We received intelligence report about the consignment which originated from Chile and passed though Peru, Bolivia and Antwerp in Germany to Tin Can Island Port and we kept tab on it. The drug was neatly concealed in customized floor wood in a container. The container was cleared and taken to a private warehouse in Orile-Ignamu.”

Giade added that the clearing agent and other Nigerians involved in drug deals had been arrested to ascertain their level of involvement.

He said: “The agency and other security agencies which are also on the alert to prevent criminal acts capable of disrupting peace and stability in the country, are determined to send all drug barons out of circulation.”

http://www.vanguardngr.com/2010/07/27/ndlea-intercepts-n4b-cocaine-in-lagos/


Agency arrests Chinese nationals over N4b cocaine
BY OKECHUKWU NNODIM

July 27, 2010 01:27AM







450.4kg of cocaine with a street value of over N4 billion has been seized by the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA).

Announcing the seizure of the hard drugs, Mitchell Ofoyeju, spokesperson for the agency disclosed that the cocaine was discovered by the anti-narcotics organisation after it figured out the major drug syndicate that specialises in the unlawful smuggling of cocaine from South American countries to West Africa.

Ahmadu Giade, chief executive of the agency said that the cocaine was imported from Chile, and that some barons in the cartel including two Chinese nationals have been arrested alongside their clearing agent who is a Nigerian.

He described the seizure as a major breakthrough in the country’s counter narcotics efforts, adding that this is the second largest cocaine discovery at the Tin Can Island Ports in Lagos State.

“The entire operation was intelligence-based and professionally executed. This is the second largest seizure of cocaine next to the 14.2 tons made at the same port in 2006,” he said. “The quantity is frightening and the street value paints a horrendous picture of the illicit drug trade. Apart from the estimated street value in the country the value would have doubled in Europe. The seizure is exciting to us. It is also a wakeup call for all hands to be on deck.” The agency’s boss, however, assured that investigations are ongoing to get other members of the syndicate arrested, and that it had kept tab on the consignment which originated from Chile and passed through Peru, Bolivia and Antwerpen in Belgium before getting to Tin Can Island Port.

“The drug was neatly concealed in customized floor wood inside a container which was cleared and taken to a private warehouse at Iganmu, Lagos,” he said.

“The agency is determined to send all drug barons out of circulation to prevent criminal acts capable of disrupting peace and stability in the country. I have therefore called for total security alertness in all entry and exit points. State Commanders have also been placed on red alert to ensure effective surveillance and prompt arrests and seizures of any illicit drug shipment.” Meanwhile, the agency’s spokesperson said that the clearing agent of the consignment and other people closely linked to the seizure were also arrested to ascertain their level of involvement as all the clearing documents had fake addresses on them.

“Drug seizures at the ports are usually very large because of the relative ease of transporting containerised goods in vessels and the volume of imported containers,” said Mr. Ofoyeju.

http://234next.com/csp/cms/sites/Next/Home/5599183-146/story.csp

The GEO assault a sailboat in the Atlantic with 1,200 kilos of cocaine

By Agencia EFE -
Madrid, 17 jul (EFE) .- Agents of the Ad Hoc National Police Operations (GEO) have been assaulted in the Atlantic, at the height of the Azores, a sailing vessel loaded with 1,200 kilos of cocaine was bound for the costs Galician Efe reported to investigative sources.
The operation, developed jointly by the Panel Response to Organized Crime (GRECO) of Galicia and the Customs Surveillance Service has been carried out after detecting that one of the clans of the drug in the Arosa estuary planned to introduce a important cache of drugs in Spain.

In the course of the investigation it was found the presence of a sailboat near the Azores, in charge of moving the cocaine to Galicia.

In the assault on the Brazilian flag vessel, GEO agents have arrested three British citizens who were aboard the small boat and were responsible for bringing drugs into Spain.

It is suspected that the contraband had reached the Azores in another larger mother ship, and then was aerosol sample transferred to the boat to try to circumvent the heavily guarded on the Spanish coast.

The police operation is still open and further arrests are not excluded from the drug gangs in Galicia who were awaiting the arrival of the cocaine for distribution and sale.

The sailboat assaulted is now being towed to a port of the Canary Islands where he will arrive over the next week.

Customs seize 134 kg of Roissy cocaine

July 16, 2010
Francois BAROIN, Minister of Budget, Public Accounts and State Reform, commended the customs Roissy for the largest seizure of cocaine made by Customs at the airport.

Customs officials at Roissy now proliferating controls to block imports of cocaine flows are still of concern. In this context, they conducted last Sunday at Terminal 2E, the thorough examination of a flight from Bogota (Colombia).

Investigations into the passenger failed to produce results, they decided to conduct a thorough inspection of the aircraft and luggage compartments in order to increase the likelihood of seizures.

This decision has been positive since, after a thorough search, they discovered an unaccompanied baggage in which was over 134 kilos of cocaine (134 334 grams).

Estimated at around 8 million euros on the illicit market for resale of drugs, making this new customs Roissy is a new blow to the economy of illegal narcotics.

It is the third major seizure of cocaine made from a little over a month by the Customs Service, totaling more than 1.9 tons of cocaine and a shortfall of more than 114 million euros for criminal networks.

The French customs, which has captured the essence of cocaine intercepted in France in 2009, these past weeks a series of good results against the increasing imports of the drug.

The Greek authorities today seized a shipment of 80 kilograms of cocaine from Venezuela

The Greek authorities today seized a shipment of 80 kilograms of cocaine from Venezuela aboard a private yacht Polish flag heading for the Greek island of Lefkada in the Ionian Sea.

Police on the island told Efe that the drugs were hidden in the hold of the boat and that after this cache is a network of drug trafficking "from Venezuela to be sold in Greece."

Besides drugs, police seized 85,000 euros and a gun and arrested eight suspected members of the network, including six Greeks and two foreigners, whose nationality was not disclosed by police.

The operation is still open and is trying to reach more members of the drug ring, according to police sources.

La Guardia Civil and the Tax Office have seized 111.5 kilograms of cocaine at the Port of Tarragona,

La Guardia Civil and the Tax Office have seized 111.5 kilograms of cocaine at the Port of Tarragona, which was stored merchandise in three traveling bags in a container aboard a ship from Cartagena (Colombia).

In a statement, the Customs Surveillance Service and the Civil Guard (ODAIFI) port, 1 July proceeded to select four container ship 'Calapalma', which had been unloaded at the Port of Tarragona, although their final destination was port of Valencia.

However, using a drug-sniffing dog, found that in one of the containers, in addition to goods entered, there were three bags with tablets of a substance later found that it was cocaine. The proceedings of the case have been delivered to the police court of Tarragona.

Cala Palma
IMO: 9164770
Flag: Italy
Reg. Owner: Cosiarma S.p.A.
Type: Reefer

Heroine seized

22-07-2010

A custom official uses a hammer to break a semi-precious gemstone to remove heroine after its seizure at a dry port in the northwestern city of Peshawar yesterday. Heroine weighing over 84kg worth million of dollars was concealed in Lapis Lazuli semi-precious gemstones destined for Indian city of Jaipur, customs official Rashid Habib said.

http://www.gulf-times.com/site/topics/article.asp?cu_no=2&item_no=375825&version=1&template_id=41&parent_id=23

Heroin destined for UK seized

Published: July 21, 2010



ISLAMABAD - The Model Customs Collectorate Islam-abad foiled an attempt to smuggle huge cache of heroin to England and seized 19kg of heroin worth Rs 100 million.
This stock of heroin was recovered from a cargo warehouse situated near Benazir Bhutto international Airport.
Speaking at a press conference, Collector Model Customs Collectorate, Sarwat Tahira Habib on Tuesday said that she received credible information about the huge cache of heroin.
On receiving information, a team raided on warehouse near Islamabad Express Way and took 15 packets into custody.
The packets when opened led to the recovery of heroin powder of 19 Kg. It was of fine quality artfully concealed in small polythene packets glued to the inner paperboard of the cloth rolls. The approximate value of the recovered heroin powder in the International market is Rs 100 million.
The raiding team comprising Abdul Razzaq, Additional Collector, MCC, constituted a team comprising the Customs Preventive staff headed by Jehan Bahadar, Deputy Collector (Preventive) and Koukab Farooq, Deputy Collector Export, BBI Airport.
It was also learnt that the some traffickers would make attempt to smuggle huge quantity of heroin powder duly concealed in fabrics consigned to UK through Air Freight Unit, Islamabad.
Meanwhile, Member (Customs) Munir Qureshi has appreciated the officers and staff of the MCC, Islamabad for breaking its own record of the biggest seizure by Customs during the current year in Rawalpindi/Islam-abad station and stressed the need for continued effort to counter narcotics smuggling attempts in future.



http://www.nation.com.pk/pakistan-news-newspaper-daily-english-online/Regional/Islamabad/21-Jul-2010/Heroin-destined-for-UK-seized

Half-baked smuggling idea ends up in smoke

Wednesday July 14, 2010
By M. KUMAR
SHAH ALAM: An Iranian’s attempt to smuggle RM1mil worth of drugs inside a microwave oven turned out to be a half-baked idea when the police suspected a simmering plot.
The 27-year-old man had hidden the drugs so well in the side and top panels of a microwave oven that the electrical item actually successfully went past the airport X-ray machine without triggering any alarm.

However, police stationed at KL International airport who saw the man acting suspiciously decided to conduct another check on him at 11.15pm on Friday, said Selangor Narcotics chief Asst Comm Nordin Kadir.

“When they did a more thorough examination of the microwave oven, they found 10 plastic bags of drugs hidden underneath the panels,” he said at a press conference yesterday.

Police seized about 4.15kg of syabu with a street value of around RM1.03mil along with USD100 (RM320.25) and RM55.

ACP Nordin said the man who owns a motorcycle workshop in Iran flew in from Dubai and had planned to stay in Malaysia for only three days.

He told police he was paid around USD500 (about RM1,600) to deliver the drugs.

ACP Nordin said police had arrested 55 foreigners including three women attempting to smuggle drugs through KLIA so far this year.

ACP Nordin also added that it was very possible that Malaysia was a transit point for drugs, especially for syabu due to its higher price here.

“In Iran, 1kg of syabu is about RM160,000 but the amount jumps to RM250,000 in Malaysia,” he said.

It is understood the drugs were sold at a higher price here because dealers added other types of chemicals to the drugs.

ACP Nordin said the man would be remanded until July 17 and was investigated under Section 39B of the Dangerous Drugs Act 1952.

Should the man be found guilty, he will face the mandatory death penalty.

http://thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=/2010/7/14/nation/6660061&sec=nation

First true submarine captured from American drug smugglers

Proper diesel-electric boat found at jungle 'shipyard'

By Lewis Page

Posted in, 6th July 2010 11:38 GMT

Authorities in Ecuador say they have captured the first true submarine designed and built to smuggle drugs. "Semi-submersible" vessels have long been built for the narcotics trade, but it appears that the drug runners have now upped their game to make vessels able to travel completely underwater.

"It is the first fully functional, completely submersible submarine for transoceanic voyages that we have ever found," Jay Bergman, Andean regional director for the US Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) told AP.

According to reports the sub captured at the weekend measured 33m long, would have carried a crew of five or six, and was equipped with twin screw diesel-electric propulsion, a periscope and "air conditioning". It could have carried up to 10 tonnes of cargo, according to an initial DEA assessment.

The sub was reportedly found at a secret jungle "shipyard" facility hidden up an Ecuadorian river not far from the Colombian border. The shipyard complex had accommodation for up to 50 people, but only one was found by the Ecuadorian police and troops who arrived there at the weekend following a DEA tip.

"This is in a new maritime drug-trafficking class of its own," said Bergman.

Drug smugglers wishing to move cargoes through intensively patrolled and monitored Central American waters began using semi-submersibles years ago. A semi-submersible vessel is typically propelled by ordinary marine engines, but floats almost entirely under the surface. Only air intakes and some means for the crew to navigate need to project above the wave. However low-tech drug subs, lacking the exhaust diffusers sometimes used by military vessels to lessen infrared signature, usually have an exhaust stack too.

A semi-sub is much harder to see visually than a normal boat, and considerably harder to pick up on radar - especially a radar mounted in a surface vessel or shore installation, as opposed to one in an aircraft. But even if a semi-sub diffuses its engines' hot exhaust through the sea rather than simply blowing it into the air it still has a noticeable infrared signature. More significantly, once the authorities have detected it, it has no means of escape.

A proper diesel-electric submarine like the one discovered at the weekend has the option of shutting down its engines and submerging fully to run on batteries. The sub is then completely invisible on radar and infrared: interdiction forces can then only locate it by using sonar, which is shorter-ranging, far less reliable, and very expensive to use on a large scale.

A modern military diesel-electric boat can travel some hundreds of miles on battery power, though with the disadvantage of moving at a crawl - it will travel less than a hundred miles in a day like this. Higher speeds are possible, but they slash range to a small fraction of the maximum.

The chances are that the Ecuadorian drug-sub had no such long-ranging fully submerged capabilities: it is probably only capable of shorter journeys entirely underwater, and intended to work in semi-submerged or surfaced mode much of the time, like a World War II German U-boat. In especially heavily watched waters, or if approached by law-enforcement units, the sub would dive and go slow on batteries, confident that it could no longer be followed.

In many ways the use of genuine subs to move drugs may have been seen as inevitable. The technology is far from difficult - such submarines came into military use well before World War I (in fact press photos show a distinct resemblance between the captured Ecuadorian boat and the Royal Navy's first submarine, Holland I).

There are hints that other proper subs are already in service with the drug lords. Colombian navy commander Admiral Hernando Will told AP that his patrols had seized 22 old style semi-submersibles last year, but this year so far only one.

The drug barons may find, however, that they need to raise their game further still in future. Most Western navies still maintain significant anti-submarine forces, which have been lacking any real employment ever since the Soviet sub fleet largely vanished from the world stage twenty years ago. Subhunting frigates and helicopters are already used routinely on anti-drugs patrols in the vicinity of central America; the specialists who operate them would love nothing more than a chance to tackle opposition a bit more tricky than go-fast speedboats. ®

http://www.theregister.co.uk/2010/07/06/true_sub_captured_from_drug_smugglers/

video: http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/world/la-fg-ecuador-narco-sub-20100706,0,162212.story

Dubai Customs officials seize 8kg of heroin

Dubai seizes heroin smuggled in car parts
Dubai customs said yesterday it has seized 8kg of heroin stashed inside steel auto parts coming from an unnamed Asian country. Inspectors “uncovered one of the most complicated attempts to smuggle drugs in which auto parts were used after being filled with 8kg of heroin coming from an Asian country,” it said. The way the drugs were hidden “raises suspicion that the manufacturer is involved in the smuggling attempt, as the steel parts were professionally welded,” said the air cargo chief at Dubai customs, Omar Ahmed al-Muhairi. Air cargo customs have thwarted 14 attempts to smuggle drugs since the start of 2010.

http://www.gulf-times.com/site/topics/article.asp?cu_no=2&item_no=374195&version=1&template_id=37&parent_id=17

Dubai Customs officials seize 8kg of heroin
Dubai Customs officials at Cargo Village have seized eight kilogrammes of heroin hidden in a shipment of car parts

Published: 17:00 July 13, 2010

Dubai: Dubai Customs on Monday foiled an attempt to smuggle 8 kg of heroin through Cargo Village into the country.

A Dubai Customs inspector suspected the shipment after running it through a routine scan, where it was found that the shipment contained nine auto parts that were distributed in two boxes.

White powder was found after drilling a hole into one of the parts inside the boxes and analysis tests showed the powder as heroin.

Omar Ahmad Al Muhairi, First Director of Air Cargo Operations in Dubai Customs, said drug smugglers usually resort to many complex measures to sneak in the drugs.

"However, this was by far the most complex attempt that the Dubai Customs inspectors were able to foil due to the modern method of concealing drugs and the proficiency of the gang behind the attempt," he said.

"This attempt increases our suspicion about the involvement of the auto parts company since the parts made of steel were welded in such a professional manner," Al Muhairi said.

Legal procedure

Al Muhairi said the heroin was handed to the office of the Anti-Narcotics Department in Cargo Village so the necessary legal procedures could be taken and within the framework of cooperation between Dubai Customs, the Anti-Narcotics department and Dubai Police.

Al Muhairi reaffirmed that Dubai Customs takes all necessary measures to ensure that harmful substance do not enter the country. "Dubai Customs are keen on further improving the capabilities and experience of its inspectors," Al Muhairi said.

"We currently have 70 inspectors assigned in Cargo Village, and they undergo training programmes to efficiently use up-to-date scanning equipment and to foil such smuggling attempts," he added.

Operations

According to the latest figures, during the first half of 2010, the Air Cargo Operations department in Dubai Customs has foiled 14 drug smuggling operations. Seven of these attempts were transit packages from African and Asian countries heading to western countries, and another seven attempts in air cargo packages.

In these attempts, six hashish, five opium, one heroin, one qat, and one opiate drug smuggling operation was foiled.

The highest number of drug confiscations was recorded in June 2010 with a total of eight attempts which were foiled, followed by March during which month at least three attempts were foiled by the Customs officials.

http://gulfnews.com/news/gulf/uae/crime/dubai-customs-officials-seize-8kg-of-heroin-1.653870

Dubai Customs foils bid to smuggle 14.6 ton of internationally prohibited chemical substances

07/07/2010
Dubai Customs foiled bid to smuggle a cargo containing internationally prohibited chemical substances used in drugs manufacturing arriving in from an Asian country en route to a third country via Dubai.

The smuggling attempt was foiled when the relevant departments at Dubai Customs gathered information indicating the existence of a container on board a vessel arriving in Jebel Ali Port from an Asian country suspected to be containing chemical substances whose composition enter into the manufacturing of drugs.

The container was landed and photographed by container imaging device at the containers terminal.

The images showed the existence of barrels lined up inside the containers in contrast with the bill of lading, which indicates that the cargo include plastic and glass spectacles.


A team from Dubai Customs was established in order to open and inspect the container in the presence of the freight forwarder.

Upon opening the container, 73 plastic barrels were found to be containing chemical substances of pervasive smell.
According to the seizure report being prepared on such occurrence, the total weight of the cargo intended to be smuggled to its final destination was 14.6 ton (14600 kg) packed in plastic barrels at 200 kg each.


The cargo was detained for further processing while Dubai Police forensic laboratory technicians were recalled to take random samples from five barrels for testing purposes.

The seizure report of Dubai Customs pointed out that the analysis results being conducted by using infrared rays and gas chromatography equipment proved that the cargo contains Acetic Anhydride and calcium carbonate emulsion, which are internationally controlled and listed in UN Agreement on Narcotic and Psychotropic Substances of 1988.

Such amount is considered to be the biggest to be seized by Dubai Customs within smuggling of prohibited chemicals activity.

The process reflects Dubai Customs keenness to fulfill its international obligations towards drugs control, foil all bids aiming to disseminate the same, control illegitimate trade, protect local and foreign society against entry and smuggling of detrimental substances and underline Dubai position as one of the most secured crossing for legitimate trade.

The actions taken by Dubai Customs are in line with the International Narcotic Control Board requirements, which urged upon all governments to ensure banning of illegal passage of Acetic Anhydride through their territories following the proof of its usage in manufacturing heroin and cocaine.
http://www.dxbcustoms.gov.ae/Content/NewsCenter/News/DC_Foilsbid_toSmuggle14tonof_intlProhibited_ChemicalSubstances.htm

Drug bust nets $84M worth of cocaine

The cocaine was packed inside stone pavers
Updated: Tuesday, 13 Jul 2010, 8:01 AM EDT
Published : Tuesday, 13 Jul 2010, 8:01 AM EDT

SYDNEY (CNN/AUBC) - Police say they've helped crack a major South American drugs syndicate with links to Australia.

As part of the operation, they seized 240 kilograms of cocaine in Melbourne. The cocaine was on its way to Sydney. The drugs are worth around $84 million.

The cocaine was packed inside stone pavers in a container shipped from Mexico. It was found by police when it arrived at the port of Melbourne.

Police say they're still trying to track down the head of the syndicate, who is believed to be based overseas.

"This is a very significant bust. This will really hurt them. This syndicate operates out of South America we will allege, and it will hurt them," said Det. Chief Superintendent Ken McKay.

Four men, including American and Mexican nationals, have appeared in court over the drug seizure.

Video: http://www.woodtv.com/dpps/news/strange/drug-bust-nets-84million-worth-of-cocaine-ob10-jgr_3478662



$84 million of cocaine seized & four people charged during joint drug operation
Joint media release with the NSW Police Force and the Australian Federal Police

Issued at 9:35am on Tuesday 13 July 2010.

A joint investigation involving the NSW Police Force, Australian Federal Police and the Australian Customs and Border Protection Service has resulted in the seizure of 240 kilograms of cocaine – the fifth largest seizure of this drug in Australian history.

The significant operation involved investigations in Victoria and New South Wales and has prevented $84 million worth of cocaine reaching Australian streets.

Four men have been arrested and charged. A 30-year-old United States National was charged with attempting to possess a commercial quantity of a border controlled drug and conspiracy to supply a large commercial quantity of a prohibited drug.

A 25-year-old Mexican National was charged with attempting to import a commercial quantity of a border controlled drug.

Two other men aged 24 and 25 and both from Australia, have been charged with attempt to possess commercial quantity of a border controlled drug.

The men have been refused bail and will re-appear at various dates over the next two months.

The charges relate to joint investigations conducted by officers from the NSW Police Force, the Australian Federal Police, and the Australian Customs and Border Protection Service into the alleged shipment of cocaine from Mexico to Australia.

On Monday 14 June, 2010, Customs and Border Protection selected two shipping containers of stone pavers at the Port Melbourne Cargo Examination Facility for examination. During the examination, 240 kilograms of cocaine were found to be concealed within some of the pavers.

As part of the operation, the cocaine was replaced with an inert substance. The shipment was then delivered to a warehouse in the Melbourne suburb of Moorabbin, where it will be alleged it was sorted and the pavers containing ‘drugs’ separated from the legitimate pavers.

The shipment was then conveyed to Sydney where it was delivered to a suburban address in Baulkham Hills, arriving on Saturday 3 July 2010.

On Sunday 4 July 2010, police arrested the 25-year-old Mexican National after he allegedly sorted and transported the pavers from Victoria.

On Tuesday 6 July 2010, the two Australian men aged 24 and 25 were arrested in Mascot as they allegedly attempted to take receipt of 30 kilos of the cocaine shipment.

The 30-year-old United States National was later charged for his alleged role in attempting to facilitate the distribution of the cocaine.

Director of the NSW State Crime Command’s Organised Crime Directorate, Detective Chief Superintendent Ken McKay, said, “This operation has been a major undertaking by all three agencies and has utilised the expertise of police from across states and federal jurisdictions.

“As a result, police have effectively disrupted what is a large organised crime syndicate and prevented $84 million worth of cocaine reaching our streets,” Det/Ch/Supt Ken McKay said.

AFP National Manager Serious and Organised Crime, Assistant Commissioner Kevin Zuccato said the arrests demonstrate that effective inter-agency cooperation is a crucial part of the detection and disruption of criminal enterprises operating across international borders.

“This successful operation involved policing resources across Australia’s two largest cities and the AFP’s international network, and is a prime example of our commitment to combating criminal enterprises that operate internationally.

“The combined efforts of this joint investigation have directly resulted in a seizure that has saved the Australian community $69.6 million in associated health and social costs,” Assistant Commissioner Zuccato said.

Customs and Border Protection NSW Regional Director, Andrew Hosking, said that this result shows the great work of officers from all the agencies involved.

"I'd like to commend all the officers who worked tirelessly on this operation. Their dedication and hard work has kept this harmful substance from entering the Australian community," he said.

http://www.customs.gov.au/site/100713JointMediaRelease.asp

Customs officers hamper opium smuggling at Kapitan Andreevo border checkpoint

2010-07-26

Customs officers at Kapitan Andreevo border checkpoint hampered an attempt of smuggling 1.150 kilos of opium, the press office of Customs Svilengrad reports.
Last night, customs authorities stopped a truck of an Iranian national for a check-up. The man was travelling from Iran to Germany through Bulgaria.
During the search, customs officers found 4 packages attached to driver's body with an elastic belt.
The packages contained resinous substance and were weighting around 150 - 500 grams each. The drug test made on field responded to opium, which is used for heroin production, experts comment.
A couple of months ago, authorities at Kapitan Andreevo detained five times bigger opium shipment.

http://www.customs.bg/en/pubs/3071

Customs intelligence reveals 976 pounds of marijuana

2010-07-12
Acting on intelligence members of the Customs Contraband Enforcement Team (CET) on Friday, July 9 conducted an examination of a transhipment container originating from Spain destined to Costa Rica at the Container Stripping Station (Berth Eleven), Kingston Container Terminal (KCT). The seal affixed to the 20ft container was removed and opened which revealed a number of small bales among palletized shipments of ceramic tiles.
Further examination of one of the bales exposed vegetable matter resembling and emitting the odour of marijuana. The seizure of this container resulted in 36 bales of marijuana weighing 976 pounds. The container was handed over to the Trans National Crime and Narcotics Division (TCND) for further examination and investigation.
Similar to this seizure, the Jamaica Customs Department is actively pursuing intelligence based investigations and risk based techniques, in collaboration with the Jamaica Constabulary Force (JCF) to stem drug trafficking through our ports while continuing to secure government revenue.

http://www.jacustoms.gov.jm/home_template.php?page=newsarticles&group_id=1&id=54

Cocaine worth £1.3m seized at Suffolk port

16 July 2010 Last updated at 13:24 GMT

Cocaine with a street value of £1.3m has been seized at the Port of Felixstowe in Suffolk.
The drugs were hidden inside a container shipped from Ecuador and destined for Antwerp in Belgium.

Officers said they found two black holdalls containing cocaine on top of a container of banana flakes.

The gangs operate by putting the drugs in a container and re-sealing it with another member of the gang retrieving the drugs at the other end.

Bill Form, assistant director for the UK Border Agency at Felixstowe, said: "This would appear to be the work of a 'rip off' gang.

"The smugglers target well-established companies in the hope that the containers will not be subject to the same level of scrutiny as less well known firms.

"However, we're equipped with the latest technology, including X-ray scanners, and will stop at nothing to prevent dangerous drugs getting into the UK."
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-suffolk-10664337

The Navy seized 257 kilos of cocaine in two operations conducted in the Gulf of Uraba.

A total of 257.9 kilos of cocaine were seized by the Navy in the Caribbean in two coordinated operations with the National Police in the Gulf of Uraba.
In a first task were seized 60 kilos of the alkaloid in the cargo area of Bahia Colombia. The authorities found aboard the cargo ship named "Cala Pedra", Italian flag, in three type passenger bags hidden in containers that were destined for Lisbon, Portugal.
The other result was in the dock Waffe, in the municipality of Turbo, Antioquia, in a kind fishing boat named "Mr. Tolo ", which apparently sought out to sea a load of 197 kilos of cocaine to be transshipped to North America. He was captured a man, 45 years.
The drugs seized is worth about $ 7 million on the international black market, according to the Navy in the Caribbean.

http://www.eluniversal.com.co/v2/cartagena/sucesos/caen-257-kilos-de-cocaina

500 Nigerians convicted of drug trafficking in Switzerland

Written by Christian Okeke, Abuja Wednesday, 14 July 2010

About 500 Nigerian have been confirmed to have been convicted of drug-related offences in Switzerland.

This confirmation came as the officials of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and those of the Swiss Federal Immigration Office, on Monday in Abuja, met over the unfortunate death of a 29-year-old Nigerian asylum seeker in March, at Zurich Airport, shortly before he was due to be sent home on a special flight to Lagos.

The Nigerian, a convicted drug dealer who had been in Switzerland since 2005, was due to board the flight with 15 others, who had refused to leave the country despite expulsion orders.

He was said to have been on a hunger strike in protest at his extradition and later fell ill shortly after he was forcibly restrained and immediate attempts to resuscitate him failed, following which he died on the tarmac.

But at the Foreign Affairs headquarters in Zone 3, the officials from both sides first met behind closed doors prior to an open session where journalists were invited for briefing.

Confirming the conviction, the leader of the six-man Swiss delegation, Mr Alard du Bois-Reymond, disclosed that there were currently about 1,700 Nigerians seeking asylum in Switzerland apart from 1,800 living in the country on a permanent residency.
http://www.tribune.com.ng/index.php/news/8228-500-nigerians-convicted-of-drug-trafficking-in-switzerland-

£1m drug haul found in Telford meat delivery

Wednesday 14th July 2010, 11:23AM BST.

A £1 million haul of illegal drugs was discovered in a delivery bound for a Shropshire meat company.
About 15 UK Border Agency and police officers swooped on Wholesale Meat Sale, in High Street, Hadley, Telford, at about 10am yesterday as part of a drug smuggling investigation after the cannabis was found within a shipment which arrived in Dover from Spain.

Store owner Dave Smith today said the UK Border Agency officers told him 405 kilogrammes of cannabis had been found with his meat.
http://www.shropshirestar.com/news/2010/07/14/1m-drug-haul-found-in-telford-meat-delivery/

Intercepted at sea a sailboat with the largest cache of cocaine from Colombia via Morocco

The Government Delegate in the Canary Islands, Carolina Darias, along with officials of the Civil Guard and a representative from the Inland Revenue, will be announced Saturday morning the details of the operation "South Sea", which culminated with the arrest of ten people and the seizure of more than 2666 kilos of cocaine on a sailboat from Colombia.

SBU seized on a record for trafficking cocaine batch Europe - 1200 kg

July 29, 2010
As a result of measures to halt the activities of transnational organized criminal groups that specialize in smuggling cocaine from Latin America to Europe, the move eliminated channel smuggling heavy drugs to Ukraine using sea transport.

SBU special operation was held in Odessa and Ivano-Frankivsk and Lviv oblasts in the interaction with the State Customs Service of Ukraine, State Border Guard Service of Ukraine, General Prosecutor of Ukraine and foreign partners.

In mid-July to the port in Odessa from Venezuela came two containers of induction melting furnaces, which were in use. As a result of careful maintenance of concrete structures of the SBU, Customs and Border Service in specially designed hiding place was found 1192.95 kg of cocaine (12 million doses), packaged in bricks in 1200.

Estimated market value of drugs is nearly 180 million dollars.

Consignee in Ukraine was a commercial structure with Ivano-Frankivsk region. The said company was recently accredited by the customs authorities and this was her first foreign operation, which strengthened the suspicion of a law enforcement SPD specifically for smuggling transaction.

By agreement with the General Prosecutor of Ukraine decided to hold a "controlled delivery" of the drug to determine the individuals and entities involved in the organization and carrying contraband, and stop their illegal activities.

A special operation was detained five people suspected of committing a specific crime (citizens of Russia, Germany, Bulgaria and two of our fellow citizens).

Investigator for the Department of Security Service of Ukraine in Odessa region for smuggling cocaine prosecuted on grounds of crime under Part 3 tablespoons. 305 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine. Currently implemented appropriate operational and investigative measures.

During last month by the Security Service in coordination with other competent authorities denounced the third movement of cocaine smuggling case of Latin America to Ukraine using sea transport. Since trafficking seized more than 1900 kg of this drug.

Newsroom Security Service of Ukraine

Intercepted at sea a sailboat with the largest cache of cocaine from Colombia via Morocco

The Government Delegate in the Canary Islands, Carolina Darias, along with officials of the Civil Guard and a representative from the Inland Revenue, will be announced Saturday morning the details of the operation "South Sea", which culminated with the arrest of ten people and the seizure of more than 2666 kilos of cocaine on a sailboat from Colombia.
Interceptado en alta mar un velero con el mayor alijo de cocaína procedente de Colombia vía Marruecos


La Delegada del Gobierno en Canarias, Carolina Darias, junto con responsables de la Guardia Civil y un representante de la Agencia Tributaria, darán a conocer mañana sábado los detalles de la operación “Mar del Sur”, que ha culminado con la detención de diez personas y la incautación de más de 2.666 kilos de cocaína en un velero procedente de Colombia

Día: Sábado, 3 de julio de 2010


Hora: 10.00 horas (hora local)


Lugar: Comandancia de la Guardia Civil


C/ Conde de Pallasar, 3, Santa Cruz de Tenerife










Ante cualquier duda o aclaración:


Oficina Periférica de Comunicación de la Guardia Civil de S/C de Tenerife (OPC) Teléfono 922648500, ext. 320, o 659960727 (José Elvira)

http://www.guardiacivil.org/prensa/notas/noticia.jsp?idnoticia=2868

The National Police involving a shipment of palm with cocaine

The investigation into the theft in a house led agents to an organized group of drug traffickers
The drug came to Spain hidden in a container from Costa Rica
The group is also broken up two rounds in housing attribute of Alicante and Madrid where he stole 5,500 euros and took jewelry and electronic equipment
02-July-2010 .- National Police agents have spoken a load of cocaine hidden in canned palm hearts. The drugs were hidden in rucksacks four hidden in a container from Colombia. The investigation of a robbery in an apartment in Alicante led the agents to the lack of an organized group of drug traffickers also involved in the robbery with intimidation in homes. In the operation have been arrested eleven people and seized 125 kilos of cocaine.
Thefts from homes and drug trafficking
The investigation was initiated following a robbery at a home in Alicante last August. The victim told the officers that someone rang the bell and, as he prepared to open, three men dressed as garbage pushed with great force the door and gained access to the interior. One of them threatened him with a gun and stole a gold watch, 4,000 euros and other valuable effects.
The Judicial Police Brigade Provincial - Alicante UDYCO took over the investigation. Then, the agents were able to identify and stop in Alicante four of those involved allegedly collaborated with the perpetrators of the assault. In addition there were two house searches in which speaking about 3.5 kilos of hashish and a precision scale, among other effects.
The research done as a result of this event allowed the police to identify several individuals, of Colombian nationality and living in Madrid, as alleged perpetrators of the robbery.
In addition to this assault, the investigations of the agents were able to attribute to this group another robbery in his home in Madrid on 21 May. Three men beat and threatened the occupants of the apartment with a stun gun and a knife and managed to grab pieces of jewelry, electronic equipment and about 1,500 euros in cash.
Cocaine Shipment
In parallel, researchers learned that the organization now disbanded was involved in drug trafficking on a large scale. The investigators knew that these people were waiting for a ship from the port of Cartagena (Colombia), to the port of Valencia, carrying a concealed container where would a game of cocaine. Once the ship was inspected, were found inside, hidden among the cargo, three bags containing 125 kilos of cocaine.
The four responsible for receiving the drug were found and arrested in Madrid. Subsequently, the remaining members of the network was found near his home in Madrid, where the police came to his arrest. In the two records have been seized carried a pistol, a revolver, ammunition, three ski masks and two hoods, latex gloves and other documentation related to the vessel where the drug was seized.
The research was conducted by agents of the Judicial Police Provincial Brigade-UDYCO of Alicante, which have been supported by the GRECO Levant, Central UDEV General of the Judicial Police Commissioner and the Tax Office.

NB: The bags in the containers are quite difficult to see on the photo.

152 kilograms of cocaine disguised as parquet board, tried to import to Ukraine

As a result of long special operation, carried out by the Security Service of Ukraine together with the Administration of the U.S. Drug Enforcement (DEA, the Warsaw office) and the State Customs Service of Ukraine, eliminated trans-channel smuggling hard drugs from Latin America to Europe.
June 29 this year enhanced during customs inspection vessel, which arrived from Chile to the sea port of Odessa, law enforcement discovered 152 kilograms of cocaine. Narcotically cargo was hidden in a specially designed hiding place in the middle of the deck boards 200.

Philippine police seize cocaine dumped by Chinese ship

2010-07-01 17:05
MANILA, Thursday 1 July 2010 (AFP) - Police said Thursday they had confiscated over three million dollars' worth of cocaine after a Chinese ship dumped a huge cache of the illegal drug in Philippine waters.

Thirty-three bricks of cocaine, estimated to be worth 165 million pesos (3.56 million dollars), were seized and six people arrested in several raids this week on the central Philippine island of Samar, a police statement said.

"This operation was ordered... after reports were gathered that substantial amounts of cocaine were still in the hands of local citizens, especially those in the coastal areas of Samar," the statement said.

The King Yue I, a Chinese vessel, was transporting a tonne of cocaine from South America to Hong Kong in December but the crew dumped it into the sea when it learned the ship was being tracked by US authorities, the government said.

Since then, bricks of cocaine have been recovered by local fishermen and have washed up on Samar's beaches.

Despite warnings that they could face life imprisonment for drug possession, many local residents have not turned in the cocaine bricks and some of the bricks have even surfaced in drug busts in Manila.

More than 200 kilos of cocaine were earlier recovered by law-enforcers in Samar, either turned in or seized in police raids.

Some of the cocaine recovered in this week's raids was found in "sting" operations against buyers, while other bricks were found in homes following tip-offs from local residents.

The Philippines is considered a major hub for illegal drugs in Southeast Asia, with crime syndicates known to corrupt politicians by funding their campaigns.


MySinchew 2010.07.01
http://www.mysinchew.com/node/41144

1600 kilos of cocaine found in the port of Buenos Aires

The shipment was intercepted in the interior of a boat that was to sail. It is one of the largest drug operations in recent years. In total, 1625 were reported to kilos of cocaine. Online-advance was 911.
16/06/2010: 20:36: In one of the largest drug operations in recent times, police officers discovered more than a half ton of cocaine that was hidden in a shipment of apples and a boat to sail confirmed to Online-911.

While the operation was carried out under heavy secrecy, spokesmen contacted by this website confirmed the finding, but refused to provide further details because the justice issued a gag.

So far the researchers did not report arrests or raids as part of the same investigation.

According to sources, the cargo was found this afternoon and was hidden in a shipment of apples inside a boat that was coming from.

According to preliminary estimates, the seized drug has a value close to 26 million pesos in the local market, although it is marketed in Europe, for example, the price is tripled.

A total of 1,625 kilos were seized cocaine maximum purity, which is one of the most important finds of recent years.

One of the most spectacular was detected on October 15 last year, in an operation known as Warrior in the Balkans, when police found two tons of cocaine in the interior of a yacht anchored in the port of Montevideo, but had Buenos Aires party.

As was informed, the drug was traveling to Europe. Few days later, under the same cause, the researchers found 500 kilos of the same substance in a department of Núñez.

Cannabis in cucumber gang jailed

18 June 2010
A GANG caught smuggling £11million worth of cannabis into the country in lorry loads of cucumbers has been jailed for more than 66 years.

The two separate consignments caught in a covert sting, would have been enough to roll 11 million joints, which if laid end to end would have stretched from Land's End to John O'Groats.

Mastermind Paul Gurr, 44, of Allen Road, Rainham, was sentenced to seven years and six months at Basildon Crown Court, yesterday, for the bid to flood Essex, Kent and Manchester with almost four tons of the drug.

Gurr and 11 others were snared in a joint Serious Organised Crime Agency and Essex Police operation which focused on the gang's distribution points - the Ferry Lane Industrial Estate in Rainham and a depot in Orsett, between June and July, last year.

Gary Holden, 52, of Ibscott Close, Dagenham, who helped bring in a lorry load of cannabis resin weighing 1.64 tons, was described by the judge as "essential in the transport and distribution".

Sentencing Judge Alan Saggerson said: "Taken globally, this was clearly a sophisticated operation requiring detailed and careful planning and co ordination, obviously with international dimensions. Considerable professionalism had been brought to bear in order to bring this enterprise to fruition."

A senior SOCA investigator said: "Gurr was a major importer of cannabis who apparently thought that he had nothing to fear from SOCA. He was wrong. Had he been successful the scale of the importation was such that there would have been a notable affect on availability and street prices."

http://www.romfordrecorder.co.uk/content/havering/recorder/news/story.aspx?brand=RECOnline&category=newsRomford&tBrand=northlondon24&tCategory=newsromford&itemid=WeED18%20Jun%202010%2011%3A23%3A08%3A267

Cocaine seized in Panamanian province of Colon

The Panamanian authorities reported Tuesday the seizure of 64 kilograms of cocaine in the province of Colon, hidden in a container that was bound to a port in Holland.

According to the Drug Prosecutor's Office, the illegal substance was in two suitcases located in a cargo timber headed to the aforementioned European country.

Agency officials indicated that the seizure was made possible by information provided to the staff of the Judicial Investigation Department.

The seals of the containers were violated by what is presumed the possibility of linking the port workers in this case of drug trafficking.
Decomisan cocaína en provincia panameña de Colón

sábado, 19 de junio de 2010

Panamá, 18 jun (PL) Las autoridades panameñas reportaron hoy el decomiso de 64 kilogramos de cocaína en la provincia de Colón, ocultos en un contenedor que tenia como destino a un puerto de Holanda.

Según la Fiscalía de Drogas, la sustancia ilícita estaba en dos maletines ubicados en un cargamento de madera dirigido al mencionado país europeo.

Funcionarios de la institución indicaron que la incautación fue posible gracias a la información suministrada al personal de la Dirección de Investigaciones Judiciales.

Los sellos de los contenedores estaban violentados por lo que se presume la posibilidad de una vinculación de trabajadores del puerto en este caso de tráfico de estupefacientes.

La fuerza pública adelanta las pesquisas para detectar a los responsables de esa acción.


http://www.prensa-latina.cu/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=198855&Itemid=1

ANF seizes heroin worth Rs 3.5bn

Sunday, June 20, 2010

KARACHI: The Anti Narcotics Force (ANF) staff conducted a raid at Pakistan International Container Terminal (PICT) Sea Port, Karachi on Saturday and seized a huge quantity of heroin concealed in furniture from a container bearing number TCLU-5128883.

This was the outcome of an investigation previously conducted by ANF in a case bearing FIR No 35 and 36/2010 registered at ANF branch in Clifton, Karachi in which 243 kilogrammes of heroin concealed in furniture and water dispensers was recovered from containers bearing numbers PCIU-8303826 and RICU 8124230. Two individuals were also arrested in the case.

It is worth mentioning that the said container was cleared from Karachi Sea Port on May 14, 2010 and was on its way in the vessel Kota Hapas 290-W, but it was held in Singapore where it was in transit. The authorities in Singapore were contacted who checked the said container and cleared it. The ANF was not satisfied and insisted the Singaporean authorities to ship the container back to Karachi. The container reached Karachi on June 19, 2010 through vessel Van Hi 605. It was checked and heroin was found which was finely concealed in furniture.

Officials said the confiscated heroin was worth Rs 3.5 billion in international market. A case has been registered at ANF branch in Clifton under section 9 (C) of CNS Act 1997. Investigation is in progress and big disclosures are expected. staff report

http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/default.asp?page=2010\06\20\story_20-6-2010_pg12_5

UNODC to launch World Drug Report 2010

21 June 2010 - UNODC Executive Director Antonio Maria Costa will launch the World Drug Report 2010, the organization's flagship publication, on 23 June in Washington, D.C. Mr. Costa will be joined by the Director of the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy, Gil Kerlikowske, and the Director of the Federal Drugs Control Service of the Russian Federation, Viktor Ivanov.

The World Drug Report provides detailed information on the global drug market. It includes detailed estimates and trends on drugs under international control, such as cannabis, coca/cocaine, opium/heroin, and synthetic drugs. This year's report shows that opium and coca cultivation is declining in Afghanistan and the Andean countries, respectively. Drug use has stabilized in developing countries and signs indicate that it has increased in developing countries. The growing abuse of amphetamine-type stimulants and prescription drugs around the world is also highlighted.

Further information will be presented about the production, trafficking and use of illicit drugs at the event, scheduled to take place at the National Press Club at 10 a.m. EST.

http://www.unodc.org/unodc/en/frontpage/2010/June/unodc-to-launch-world-drug-report.html?ref=fs3

PDF is 11 Mb: http://www.unodc.org/documents/wdr/WDR_2010/World_Drug_Report_2010_lo-res.pdf

Over 40kg of cocaine seized in boxes with flowers in St. Petersburg

Over 40kg of cocaine seized in boxes with flowers in St. Petersburg



23 June 2010 | 10:54 | FOCUS News Agency



St. Petersburg. Militia employees of the anti drug unit in St. Petersburg have seized about 42kg of cocaine hidden in boxes with flowers, RIA Novosti announced.
The shipment of roses has arrived in Russia from South America crossing the territories of Holland, Germany and Finland.


http://www.focus-fen.net/?id=n223492

Russian officers seize cocaine hidden in roses
The cocaine had a street value of three million dollars, Russian television reported

AFP
Published: 17:46 June 23, 2010
Saint Petersburg: Drugs officers in Saint Petersburg seized 42 kilogrammes (92.4 pounds) of cocaine smuggled into Russia in boxes of cut flowers, a spokesman said Wednesday.

The Saint Petersburg regional anti-narcotics department seized the cocaine at a wholesale flower depot in the city where it was packed in a box containing roses and asters, spokesman Andrei Panov told AFP.

"According to preliminary information, the cocaine was transported to Saint Petersburg from South America, via the Netherlands, Germany and Finland," Panov said.

The cocaine had a street value of three million dollars, Russian television reported, showing the cellophane-wrapped packages in a box of white flowers.

Russia imports almost all its cut flowers, with the largest share coming from the Netherlands.

http://gulfnews.com/news/world/other-world/russian-officers-seize-cocaine-hidden-in-roses-1.645240

Video: http://www.vesti.ru/doc.html?id=371015&cid=17

Intercepted a boat in Brazil to export cocaine from Argentina

06/21/1910 - 23:19

The vessel was boarded at the port of Santos. Carrying more than one ton of drugs hidden in two containers with apples. Investigate whether the cargo belongs to an organization that delivered cocaine from Buenos Aires in crates of fruit.

Brazilian customs authorities seized over a thousand kilos of cocaine, which were sent by boat from Argentina to Spain hidden in containers with apples. The operation was conducted in the port of Santos and the authorities are investigating whether the cargo belongs to a drug gang that exported from Buenos Aires.

The cargo was hidden in two containers that had to Spain as their final destination. According to the agency told Reuters the Treasury chief inspector Brazilian Santos, Jose Antonio Mendes, the operation was made after a report sent by the Customs in Argentina.

The authorities are now seeking to confirm whether it is one of the ships dispatched from Buenos Aires by an organization that exported drugs in crates of fruit. The band was discovered in an operation called "Apple white", which included the seizure of 1,625 kilos of cocaine at the port of Buenos Aires.

Just after this procedure, the Justice Argentina had discovered that two other ships were already at sea. One, near tie in Spain. The remainder, which would be discovered by the Brazilian authorities, was preparing to make a stop at a port of that country.

Otros 1.000 kilos de cocaína fueron interceptados en un cargamento de manzanas originarias del Alto Valle rionegrino. Esta vez, en un container embarcado rumbo a españa, que fue allanado en el puerto brasileño de Santos. La droga iba disimulada dentro de las cajas donde iba la manzana embalada.

Baroin congratulate the customs of the Regional Coast Guard Caribbean / Guyana for a record seizure of cocaine

Major cocaine bust
French customs are reporting that they've seized nearly 400kg of cocaine on a yacht flying a British Virgin Islands flag off the coast of Guadeloupe.

The boat's two occupants, described as originally from Eastern Europe, are in custody in Martinique.

The cocaine was hidden in a concealed compartment.

The yacht had been under surveillance as it sailed up the Caribbean Sea from Venezuela.

This was the second seizure of illegal drugs in two weeks by the French following the discovery of almost a ton and a half of cocaine on board another yacht off Saint Martin.

Stepped up surveillance in Caribbean waters by international forces have resulted is several big drug hauls in recent months.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/caribbean/news/story/2010/06/100623_wednesdaypm.shtml



Baroin congratulate the customs of the Regional Coast Guard Caribbean / Guyana for a record seizure of cocaine



23-06-2010



Baroin congratulate the customs of the Regional Coast Guard Caribbean / Guyana for a further seizure of 385 kilograms of cocaine. On the day of 18 June 2010, Customs Coastguard Caribbean, alerted by the profile of occupants of a ketch over 15 meters flag British Virgin Islands, conduct his interception in international waters, under Article 17 of the Vienna Convention.
The suspect vessel was located by Customs Friday, June 18 at the end of the day, while he was sailing north from Venezuela, and it goes back to the Caribbean Sea, preparing to cross the Atlantic.

A first inspection carried out offshore in rough sea conditions, confirms the first elements of suspicion, but does not immediately find the vessel in the presence of narcotics.

After a thorough and systematic excavation of parts of the vessel in a sheltered area and safe, cocaine was finally discovered by customs officers Saturday, June 19 at noon, hidden in the bottom of the boat. In total, nearly 385 kg of cocaine were seized by customs officers and then released, after the customs procedure, the local branch of OCRTIS in charge of the investigation. Le parquet (JIRS de Fort de France) est immédiatement avisé de cette nouvelle saisie. The prosecutor (JIRS Fort de France) is immediately advised of this new entry.
The value of the merchandise seized is estimated to 23 million euros on the illicit market of retail sale of narcotics.

It is the second significant shipment of cocaine intercepted in less than three weeks in international waters off the Guadeloupe by flagship Customs DF 31 "Pitera.
In 2009, the French customs seized over 5,118 kilograms of cocaine, an increase of nearly 15% compared to 2008.

http://www.boursier.com/vals/ALL/francois-baroin-felicite-les-douaniers-de-la-direction-regionale-garde-cotes-antilles-guyane-pour-une-saisie-record-de-cocaine-news-388947.htm

Video press interview: http://martinique.rfo.fr/infos/actualites/caraibe-nouvelle-saisie-de-drogue_25835.html

UNODC focuses on maritime security in Central America

23 June 2010 - To further strengthen measures against organized crime in Central America, UNODC has launched the Centre of Excellence on Maritime Security in Panama City and opened a Regional Programme Office for Central America, Cuba and the Dominican Republic. These efforts aim to prevent illicit and counterfeit goods from entering markets through the world's ports.

"Most of the world's trade is shipped by containers, which means that containers are also the main delivery system for illicit goods", said UNODC Deputy Executive Director Francis Maertens, adding that "better container security can raise the risks and lower the benefits to organized crime".

The UNODC-World Customs Organization Container Control Programme helps countries identify suspicious cargo with the creation and use of intelligence and timely information-sharing. Since it started in 2006 in eight countries (Cape Verde, Costa Rica, Ecuador, Ghana, Pakistan, Panama, Senegal and Turkmenistan), the Programme has yielded impressive results: 38 tons of cocaine, 770 tons of precursor chemicals and 1,550 tons of illegally-logged wood.

Improving container security in Panama's ports is also a priority since more than 11 million containers pass through the Panama Canal every year. Since joining the Global Container Control Programme in October 2009, Panama has significantly increased the number of seizures of illicit goods hidden in containers. "Thanks to improved intelligence and information-sharing, in just seven months Panamanian authorities have managed to confiscate 146 containers transporting drugs and counterfeit goods, with a value of over US$ 20 million," said Mr. Martens.

The recently-opened Centre of Excellence in Panama City will help diagnose threats in maritime security and serve as a resource of expertise, training, data collection and analysis. It will provide strategic direction and training in search techniques, security, maritime interdiction, human trafficking and the handling of hazardous and toxic cargo. The new UNODC operational hub in Panama City will also allow the organization to provide more effective advisory services to countries in the region.

Drugs flowing from the Andean countries to North America is a key concern. "Seventy per cent of crimes in Central America are directly linked to drug trafficking," says Panama's Foreign Affairs Minister Juan Carlos Varela. "This reinforced focus on maritime security will help the governments in the region to tackle the common threat of organized crime".

http://www.unodc.org/unodc/en/frontpage/2010/June/unodc-focuses-on-maritime-security-in-central-america.html

11,000 pounds ganja seized in Pembroke Hall

Six men arrested

JamaicaObserver.com

Thursday, June 24, 2010



ELEVEN thousand pounds of compressed ganja in a container was last night seized by members of the Transnational Crime and Narcotics Division (TCND).

The ganja was being prepared for export, said police in a statement this morning.

Six men were arrested during the operation which took place between 9:00 pm and midnight. They will be interviewed further by TCND officers.

http://www.jamaicaobserver.com/news/11-000-pounds-ganja-seized-in-Pembroke-Hall

Passenger arrested with over 8kg of cocaine hidden in metal screws

The African man, M.A.N, who arrived in Dubai from Sao Paulo, Brazil, attracted attention as he was behaving in a suspicious manner, said Major General Abdul Jaleel Mahdi, director general of the General Department of Combating Narcotics at Dubai Police.

By Siham Al Najami, Staff Reporter
Published: 00:00 June 27, 2010
Dubai: The Dubai Police recently busted a large cocaine smuggling operation and seized the substance with a street value of more than Dh2 million, with the arrest of a passenger at Dubai International Airport.

The African man, M.A.N, who arrived in Dubai from Sao Paulo, Brazil, attracted attention as he was behaving in a suspicious manner, said Major General Abdul Jaleel Mahdi, director general of the General Department of Combating Narcotics at Dubai Police.

Six stacks of 12 large metal screws were found in M.A.N.'s first piece of luggage, which upon thorough inspection revealed that they were hollow. The suspect hid the cocaine in 24 large screws, Maj Gen Mahdi said.

Another six stacks with 12 large screws were hidden in the second piece of luggage. Based on a report from the General Department of Forensic Science and Criminology at Dubai Police it was determined there was 335g of cocaine stashed inside every screw.

The total quantity was 8.4kg of cocaine, said Maj Gen Mahdi.

Another smuggling operation was also busted recently when a Nigerian woman was arrested by Dubai Customs officers at Dubai International Airport while allegedly trying to smuggle 7kg of cocaine in her luggage.

The woman was flying in from Lagos to Dubai on a business trip when customs officials seized the drugs that were concealed in secret compartments in her luggage.

Meanwhile, Dubai Customs officials halted a second attempt to smuggle drugs in less than one week by an African woman.

The suspect was trying to smuggle three kilograms of crystal meth drugs which are banned worldwide. She was coming from an African country to Dubai when custom inspectors at Dubai airport's Terminal 1 had suspicions about the passenger and asked to search her.

Upon searching, they found five plastic bags wrapped with brown tape and hidden in the sides and bottom of the suitcase. Customs officials handed the suspect over to Dubai Police for further investigations.

— With additional inputs from WAM

Contact

The General Department for Combating Narcotics at Dubai Police has urged the public to cooperate with the police with any information regarding narcotics on their toll-free number 800 400 400.

http://gulfnews.com/news/gulf/uae/crime/passenger-arrested-with-over-8kg-of-cocaine-hidden-in-metal-screws-1.646571

Sardinia swim nets 24 kilos of cocaine

ALGHERO, Italy, June 24 (UPI) -- Police on the island of Sardinia say they are looking for three bystanders who allegedly helped themselves to cocaine found in an abandoned backpack.

The three had helped a vacationer pull the heavily laden rucksack ashore after she swam into it off the beach at Alghero, police told the ANSA news agency.

When the bag was opened, 19 packages of cocaine were discovered inside, and the three beach goers apparently couldn't resist pinching a few of the packets for themselves and hustling away from the scene.

ANSA said the woman who had first found the rucksack called police who found the missing packages buried in the sand nearby.

The rucksack contained 24 kilos (nearly 53 pounds) of cocaine valued at about 10 million euros ($12.3 million).

http://www.upi.com/Top_News/International/2010/06/24/Sardinia-swim-nets-24-kilos-of-cocaine/UPI-45911277409215/

Vietnamese traffickers, illegal migrants arrested in Europe cannabis crackdown

Last updated: 6/26/2010 17:10

A Vietnamese man caught in Budapest this week during Europe's biggest crackdown on Vietnamese illegal migrants, mainly involved in cannabis production.

Thirty-one Vietnamese human traffickers and 66 illegal immigrants have been arrested in Hungary, France, Germany and England, Hungarian police said in a statement Friday.



A girl almost naked was found in the trunk of a Renault Espace while many boys had been suffocating in bags behind trucks. They came to work at illegal cannabis factories in Hungary and England to earn daily meals and repay the US$20,000 to people who brought them there, the statement said.



Most of the illegal Vietnamese came from Hai Phong and provinces north of Hanoi, the police said in which BBC on Saturday called Europe’s “biggest crackdown on Vietnamese illegal migrants.”



Around 30,000 Vietnamese people are living legally in England but the illegal Vietnamese community amounts to 35,000 people. Some 4,000-5,000 Vietnamese people are living in Hungary but many of them came on invitation by companies that don’t exist, according to the Hungary National Bureau of Investigation (Nemzeti Nyomozó Iroda).



As Hungary, Slovakia and the Czech Republic are now all part of the Schengen group of countries which have no border controls between them, migrants can reach the English Channel before being asked to show documents, according to the BBC report.



Some enter Schengen countries legally on short-stay visas. Others cross illegally into Eastern Europe overland from Russia and Ukraine, the report said.



According to Hungary and England police, illegal migration to the countries is closely tied to cannabis production.



Police in England this year have discovered at least two cases of illegal cannabis production by Vietnamese people, and arrested 23.



Using special lighting to produce three crops a year, each cannabis plantation can generate profits of one million euros ($1.24 million) a year, police estimate.



http://www.thanhniennews.com/2010/Pages/20100626170630.aspx

Seized over 21 kilos of cocaine in Callao store

Thursday, June 10, 2010 14:53 Local

Anti-drug police seized 21 kilos 240 grams of the alkaloid cocaine and arrested eight people involved in simultaneous operations carried out in a Customs warehouse San Martín de Porres and Callao.

The operation took place around 1800 hours with the participation of personnel of the PNP Anti-Drug Directorate, the anti-drug prosecutor Luis Arellano Martinez and Attorney Norman drug Trinidad Sanchez.

Product of the interventions were arrested Arimuya Harold David Silva (38), Franklin Cespedes Shut (33), Luciano Rodriguez Lino (22), Carlos Mario Rodríguez Pérez (37), Lino Eduardo Caballero Pérez (54), Carlos Valdez del Aguila Spartacus (46), Gary Rengifo Melendez (27) and Estrella Rucoba Tananta (40).

The drug was divided into packages that were hidden due curbs on pallets, wooden parquet, and was bound for the Czech Republic Agro Frutic Peru SAC.

Found 300 kilos of cocaine that were being sent to Spain

30.06.1910 The Customs discovered. Now looking for a Spanish dual citizenship.

Found 300 kilos of cocaine that were being sent to Spain

At least 300 kilos of cocaine that were hidden within antique furniture were found in the port of Buenos Aires last night. The shipment, which was detected by a scanner, was bound for Spain.
The cocaine was found by Customs staff at Terminal 3, located on Avenue of the Immigrants and President Castillo, in Retiro. The cargo was inside a container about to be shipped.

"The bricks of cocaine were hidden in antique furniture that were put up especially to hide drugs," Clarin said the head of Customs in charge of the operation.

According to the heads of the operation, the owner of the drug is a man born in Spain who has dual citizenship. "It was an international mudancera delivered the furniture to take them to Spain. We're doing searches to locate "an investigator said last night.

The furniture that was hidden the drug were two desks, a dresser, two large closets and a shelf. Some had been disarmed and reassembled. In addition they had covered with nylon packing tape. This hindered the work of customs officers to find the cocaine.

"We will do raids all night to locate the Spanish citizen who tried to smuggle drugs. We will also investigate the removal company, said last night a customs agent Clarin.

The case is being investigated by the Economic Criminal Judge Jorge Brugo, the same who is in charge of the investigation called "Operation White Apples."

On Wednesday the 16th of this month are 1625 kilos of cocaine seized at the Port of Buenos Aires they were going out to Spain hidden in boxes of apples.

Five days after a vessel was intercepted when it was entering the port of Santos, Sao Paulo, Brazil. In reviewing the containers also full of apples, others were 1724 kilos of drugs. Both charges were part of the same batch and had a final destination the port of Barcelona.

The shipment, from 3349 kilos in total, the largest ever shipped in Buenos Aires, was valued at 150 million euros.

Two more containers of the same company came out to Spain. The vessel was monitored until Barcelona. But there they found nothing. Because of that, so far, five detainees.

In three operations against large-scale drug trafficking conducted by the National Police and the Tax Office

Involved more than one ton of cocaine concealed in three containers from South America

Officials of the Central UDYCO, the Commissioner General of the Judicial Police have arrested 15 members of a drug trafficking organization responsible for sending a container with 202 kilos of narcotics intercepted at the Port of Barcelona

Among those arrested is the director of a container terminal operating in this port (TERCAT), one of the alleged perpetrators of the network in our country

More than 830 kilos of cocaine, sent by the same procedure, have also been seized in two shipments frustrated by the performance of specialists in the fight against drug trafficking

Those responsible for these investigations provide details thereof to the media and expose some of the material involved, at 12:00 pm in the Police Complex Canillas, calle Julián González Reaper s / n Madrid

29-June-2010 .- Agents of the National Police and the Tax Office have conducted three operations against drug trafficking on a large scale that have allowed to intervene over a tonne of cocaine. The drug had come to Spain within three containers, camouflaged among the legal burden. The shipments, from Panama, Colombia and Argentina have been intercepted at ports of Barcelona and Algeciras. Of the total drugs seized in these proceedings, 202 kilos of narcotics were found hidden among a cargo of scrap sent by an international organization of drug traffickers to the port of Barcelona. In this operation were arrested a total of 15 individuals for their involvement in a crime against public health. Among those arrested in this device is the director of a container terminal operating in the port of Barcelona, allegedly, one of the main network in our country. In the nine records have been sealed performed numerous works of art of great value, and have involved high-end vehicles and cash, among other effects.

In addition, other research with the participation of both bodies, culminating in the seizure of 723 kilos of cocaine hidden among boxes for the preservation of flowers this time arrived at the port of Algeciras. These two arrests we have to add third action against drug trafficking in which they have seized 113 kilos of the drug. This time the drugs were concealed in a false bottom made of a large safe, which had also come to Spain within a container.

Involved the head of a container terminal in the Port of Barcelona

In early August last year, experts on drugs in the Central Narcotics Brigade National Police launched an investigation into a network of "drug dealers" who sought to introduce significant quantities of cocaine into Spain hidden in containers. Thus able to identify an individual, of South American origin, who had close contact with a Spanish citizen. It provided an important business network that would be available to drug traffickers, in order to provide legal trade coverage of drug imports. The subsequent investigation led to evidence the contacts that this person held as well with other South American citizen, who served as an intermediary between drug suppliers and those responsible for its introduction in Spain.

During the first months of this year involved in the investigation held several contacts, both in Panama and Spain. The aim was to finalize the details of the import and verify that the business infrastructure and logistics needed to make deliveries, as well as transport, storage and subsequent distribution of the drug was ready.

For the import of containers had a company without any commercial activity, whose purpose was the general marketing of metals and scrap metal items. Also found that the port of entry for cocaine would be to Barcelona. Back in May, one of the suppliers of the drug, he moved to Spain to meet with one of the alleged perpetrators of the group in our country. This person was a director of TERCAT, one of the operating container terminals at Port of Barcelona.

Seized 202 kilos of cocaine hidden in a cargo of scrap

The organization had all the necessary infrastructure to carry out the shipment-suppliers, exporters and importers, transport and storage and subsequently also controlled the port activity. To test operation sent two legal only loaded containers. These were followed by two with 25 tons of scrap metal. On this occasion, one of which also hid 202 kilos of cocaine were intercepted on arrival at the Port of Barcelona.

The device has been deployed in the arrest of 15 people. We have also performed in which nine records were sealed and numerous works of art have involved 12 vehicles, 50,000 euros in cash, computers and extensive documentation.

The transaction, which remains open, was conducted by researchers from the Central Narcotics Brigade and the GRECO Galicia, both from the Judicial Police Commissioner-General, together with the Inland Revenue, who have enjoyed the cooperation of officials from the Provincial Brigade Judicial Police of Barcelona. The research was led by the head of the Central Court of Instruction number four, Francisco Andreu, and the Special Narcotics Prosecutor, and has also had the participation of the Central Court of Instruction number three, headed by Fernando Grande Marlaska.

723 kilos of cocaine hidden in boxes for storage of flowers

Moreover, in another action against international drug traffickers, also conducted jointly by the National Police and the Inland Revenue, have been seized 723 kilos of cocaine in a container from Colombia.

The Spanish researchers, through collaboration with the Colombian police, knew the activities of a group of traffickers based in Colombia. Using the method known as "hook-blind, sent several containers that concealed a large quantity of cocaine. His final destination was the Port of Marseille, although researchers learned that the ship carrying them was to make stops in Algeciras and Barcelona, where the organization have the means to remove the illegal substance. Finally, the agents noted the arrival of two shipments to the port of Algeciras. One of them 723 kilos of cocaine hidden in sports bags several boxes located between the preservation of flowers.

Officials of the Central Narcotics Brigade and Campo de Gibraltar GRECO with the Tax Office has undertaken this action in which, so far, there have been no arrests.

113 kilos of cocaine seized in an operation Hispano-Argentina

A new anti-drug operation, this time made jointly by the National Police and the Federal Police of Argentina, has culminated in the seizure of 113 kilos of cocaine. The drug had been concealed in a false bottom to a safe practiced, who had come to Spain within a container.

This seizure is part an investigation into a drug trafficking organization based in the province of Barcelona and the Balearic Islands. The researchers found out that they had sent from Buenos Aires a container that may contain drug inside. Upon his arrival in Spain was asked the controlled delivery of it and established a comprehensive monitoring device to control their transfer to a warehouse in El Prat de Llobregat. They should pick a member of the network, the same who had rented the storage room where it was to store the goods.

Once intercepted proceeded to record the load. Inside the container had a large safe in which were found hidden in a false bottom practiced between the field structure and lining, 210 packages of varying proportions containing a total of 113 kilos of cocaine.

This operation has been carried out by agents of the Special Response Group Organized Crime (GRECO) Balearic Islands, the Commissioner General of the Judicial Police and the UDYCO of Barcelona, along with the Federal Police of Argentina. They have also enjoyed the cooperation of the tax.

Smugglers Sent by an International Crime Organization

According to chief of narcotics of the Icelandic Police, Karl Steinar Valsson, it can be assumed that a foreign crime organization was responsible for sending the two women to Iceland with 20 liters of amphetamine base on June 17th, visir.is reports today.

The women, who are German citizens born in Russia and Kazakhstan, were apprehended when disembarking the Norraena ferry at Seydisfjördur. Their car’s gas tank contained 20 liters of amphetamine base, enough to produce up to 264 kilos of amphetamine. The women will remain in custody until July 2nd, at the very least.

Valsson explained that the smuggling method, placing the liquid substance in a gasoline tank, is known to be used by Eastern European crime organizations.

The police are now investigating the matter in collaboration with Europol. Their focus is on countries known for amphetamine production.

The investigation is well under way but according to Valsson, it is still impossible to reveal anything about Iceland’s implications in the case.

http://www.icelandreview.com/icelandreview/daily_news/?cat_id=40764&ew_0_a_id=364419

Cocaine in bananas seized

30.06.2010 11:20

Officers from Poland’s Central Investigation Bureau have seized 50 kg of cocaine hidden in a container of bananas imported from Latin America.

The cocaine worth about two million euro was found in a company which trades exotic fruit in the coastal city of Gdynia. It was transported to Poland through Belgium and Germany.

Officers from the Central Investigation Bureau, who cooperated with the Gdansk Customs Office, will now establish who the cocaine was commissioned by and where it was meant to be distributed.

http://www.thenews.pl/national/artykul134619_cocaine-in-bananas-seized.html

US authorities bust Swedish cocaine ring

Published: 30 Jun 10 08:18 CET

A Swedish man has been arrested in the US on suspicion of being behind a ring of cocaine smugglers planning to ship 12 kilogrammes of the drug to Sweden hidden in car interiors, according to a report in the Expressen daily.



A 47-year-old Swedish man, who owns a car firm in Florida was arrested by federal narcotics police in a operation together with Swedish and Danish law enforcement services. A further three men have been arrested in Sweden.

The US Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) have had the Swede under surveillance for an extended period of time and when they raided the man's car show room they found ten kilogrammes of cocaine in the door of a Lincoln and a further two in a Ford Explorer, Expressen reports.

According to the newspaper's source the cars were scheduled for shipment to Gothenburg.

A further one kilogramme of the party drug was found on the 47-year-old when DEA officers made their arrest.

The Swede has not yet made any contact with either the foreign ministry or the Swedish embassy in Washington D.C..
http://www.thelocal.se/27516/20100630/

Seizure op 60 kilos Coke

Six people were arrested on Saturday morning suspected of trying to sail to Europe 60 kg of pure cocaine in Rio Grande (310 km south of Porto Alegre). According to the PF (Federal Police) from Rio Grande do Sul, the six men are Europeans - a Bulgarian, a Macedonian, two Croats and two Montenegrins.

Police said the gang had been investigating since March this year. The suspects had rented two houses on Cassino Beach, Rio Grande. One was used as a dormitory, while the other kept the cocaine in several bags.

Besides the drugs, PF seized three vehicles and a boat used by the suspects for drug transport.

World's biggest drugs 'super cartel' smashed by US authorities in Colombia

The world’s biggest drugs and money laundering "super cartel" in Colombia has been smashed by the American government, officials said.
By Andrew Hough
Published: 7:00PM BST 18 Jun 2010

Anti-drug agents arrested and charged dozens of members of the powerful Colombian cartel, including two alleged major kingpins, after a series of raids across South America.
The U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, known as ICE, estimated the cartel made an estimated $5 billion (£3.37bn) profit from their trade over the past few years.

Agents involved in Operation Pacific Rim alleged on Friday that the gang trafficked cocaine to every continent except Antarctica, with drugs bound for Europe and Britain smuggled through Spain.

They believe the gang were responsible for almost half of the cocaine on American streets, or more than 912 tonnes with an estimated street value of about $24 billion (£16.2 billion).

The drug cartels buy coca from Colombia's peasant farmers for about £250 per pound. After being refined into cocaine, the same quantity can then be sold for about £15,000 in Europe.

They are alleged to have made so much money they could not launder it all, CBS News reported.

Among those arrested were "Don Claudio” in eastern Columbia and "Don Lucho", who was captured in Argentina. Both are now awaiting extradition back to the US. The lawyer for "Don Lucho" said that his client had no connections with drugs and was a Guatemalan businessman.

Agents and Colombian authorities are continuing their hunt for other cartel members.

The cartel is said to have operated sophisticated drugs labs in the country’s jungles, engaged ruthless hit men and used submarines to transport the drugs all over the world.

"Their tentacles reach all over the globe," one ICE agent, who declined to be named, told the American broadcaster said.

"It's mind-boggling the kind of profit these guys were producing. They invest in businesses, big investments, apartment complexes, office buildings.

"But there's so much left over that they have to do something with this cash. Sometimes all that's left is to hoard it and hide it."

William Brownfield, the U.S. Ambassador to Colombia, said the operation began last September at Buenaventura, a busy Colombian port, after officials intercepted a suspicious fertilizer container that was later found with more than $28million (£19million) worth of shrink-wrapped cash.

An ICE spokeswoman was unavailable for comment as was a Colombian government spokesman.

It is a significant boost to the American government’s high-profile war on drugs, after Barack Obama, the US President, announced a new push against central and South American drugs cartels.

He last year declared that US would confront the drug cartels that were "sowing chaos in our communities".

It is also a significant victory for the Colombian government ahead of next week's second round of the local presidential elections.

On Thursday, Antonio Maria Costa, the U.N. drug and crime czar warned that international crime syndicates posed a growing threat to global security.

She told a high-level General Assembly meeting in New York that demand for illegal drugs, diamonds and other items is fueling transnational organised crime.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/southamerica/colombia/7838143/Worlds-biggest-drugs-super-cartel-smashed-by-US-authorities-in-Colombia.html



ICE takes down billion-dollar Colombian drug trafficking organization
DTO finances its illicit empire by sending cocaine all over the globe

June 18, 2010

In Operation Pacific Rim, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), working closely with the Colombian National Police and Mexican authorities, took down a major drug trafficking organization -- an industrial and transportation empire with a profit margin in the billions. The drug kingpins operating out of Colombia wrestled with a vexing problem -- they made so much money from illegal narcotics trafficking that they couldn't launder it all.

In fact, tracking the cold hard cash is one of the specialties of ICE's investigative directorate, Homeland Security Investigations (HSI). HSI is the largest investigative agency within the Department of Homeland Security. HSI agents working with ICE Attaché offices in Bogota and elsewhere brought this giant among drug organizations to its knees. HSI began Operation Pacific Rim in September 2009 after scoring a previous victory in an investigation where they seized $41 million in Colombia and Mexico. This is often the case in federal law enforcement, with one case that tips investigators off to an even bigger fish to fry.

The case began when HSI and Colombian police intercepted a suspicious shipment of what was supposed to be fertilizer, but what in actuality turned out to be bundles of shrink-wrapped cash.

As investigators delved deeper into the case, even experienced agents marveled at the enormity and sophistication of this criminal enterprise.

"This drug trafficking organization (DTO) was a far cry from a few small-time hoodlums," said James Dinkins, HSI Executive Associate Director. "These corrupt people were involved in murder, kidnapping and other forms of violence and lawlessness, but posed as legitimate business owners. They invested in apartment complexes and office buildings, yet they still had money to hide."

Luis Agustin Caicedo Velandia, also known as "Don Lucho," led this international enterprise of money launderers and drug traffickers who sent cocaine all over the globe.

Lucho earned the dubious distinction as a Consolidated Priority Organization Target (CPOT), a title law enforcement authorities use to signify narcotics traffickers who are believed to be the leaders of DTOs responsible for importing large quantities of narcotics into the United States.

"This case sends a warning to drug kingpins all over the world -- they are never too big to fail," said ICE Assistant Secretary John Morton. "In fact, this case proves that the drug trafficking organizations put themselves in a double bind. The larger their network of operations and the more illegal narcotics and cash that flow from their base of operations, the more clues are out there for ICE to trace back to them."

The El Dorado Task Force of ICE's HSI Directorate coordinated this investigation. This task force consists of 260 members from local, state and federal law enforcement, intelligence analysts and federal prosecutors. They target financial crime at all levels. Since its inception, the El Dorado Task Force has made more than 2,200 arrests and seized more than $600 million in illegal proceeds.

http://www.ice.gov/pi/nr/1006/100618eldorado.htm

CBP Chicago K-9 Rambo Seizes Opium Bound for Milwaukee

Wednesday, June 16, 2010)


Chicago — U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) K-9 officer working with his partner Rambo, seized almost 8 pounds of opium saturated twigs at the Chicago O’Hare Foreign Mail Facility June 15, 2010. While screening arriving international mail, K-9 Rambo alerted to a parcel of opium that had been soaked and dried onto wooden twigs.

The parcel, shipped from Thailand and destined to the Milwaukee Wisconsin area, was manifested with the description “Gifts.” The CBP K-9 officer opened the parcel to find a total of 10 plastic bags containing wood twigs. The twigs appeared to be saturated with an unknown substance that emitted a distinctive odor. The substance from the bags field tested positive for the presence of opiates. The 10 bags of opium saturated twigs had a combined weight of just 7.9 pounds. The shipper and the recipient are currently under investigation.


In 2009, Rambo intercepted more than 195 kilograms of opiate material. The majority of the seized shipments have originated from Thailand or Laos and were destined to various residences in Wisconsin and Minnesota. The investigations are ongoing.


“The efforts put forth by CBP K-9 officers and their partners continue to produce impressive results this year,” said David J. Murphy, CBP director of field operations in Chicago. “This is another example of how the nation’s largest and most diverse law enforcement canine program is a key contributor to the successes of CBP. These K-9 officers work daily with their partners to discover prohibited items and prevent contraband from entering the United States.”


CBP officers and agriculture specialists are stationed at the Foreign Mail Facilities located throughout the country. CBP is constantly screening arriving international mail and on the lookout for any type of contraband or prohibited items being shipped to the United States which could harm the community.


U.S. Customs and Border Protection is the unified border agency within the Department of Homeland Security charged with the management, control and protection of our nation's borders at and between the official ports of entry. CBP is charged with keeping terrorists and terrorist weapons out of the country while enforcing hundreds of U.S. laws.

http://www.cbp.gov/xp/cgov/newsroom/news_releases/local/06162010.xml



Again opium saturated twigs. See below for a few examples.


CBP officers seize opium at DHL's facility
Posted: Feb 22, 2010 8:01 PM Updated: Feb 22, 2010 8:08 PM

CINCINNATI, OH (FOX19) - U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers at the DHL facility at CVG have seized over 152 pounds of opium.
Officers discovered seven separate shipments of opium that had been soaked and dried onto wooded twigs and packed in dried leave while screening arriving international parcels.

The parcels, shipped from Laos and destined to the Minneapolis, MN area, were manifested with the description "Hmong Traditional Medicine Tea." The CBP officer opened the seven parcels on Friday to find plastic bags containing wood twigs and dried leaves.

The twigs appeared to be saturated with an unknown substance that emitted a distinctive odor. The substance field tested positive for the presence of opiates.

At this time the investigations are ongoing.

"Every day thousands of international packages are processed at these express consignment facilities," said David J. Murphy, CBP director of field operations in Chicago. "These CBP seizures are a great example of our officers attention to detail in processing the thousands of packages a day we see and still maintaining our overall border-related responsibilities, including narcotics interdiction, protecting the nation's food supply and agriculture industry from pests and diseases and also the interdiction of counterfeit items, documents and monetary instruments."

http://www.fox19.com/global/story.asp?s=12024306

More than 35 kilograms of opium-saturated twigs and leaves arrived at O'Hare from Laos on Tuesday night
Updated 8:30 PM CDT, Thu, Jan 21, 2010
A federal drug-sniffing dog is being credited with the discovery of more than 35 kilograms of opium-saturated twigs and leaves which arrived at O'Hare from Laos on Tuesday night.

A U.S. Customs and Border Protection K-9 officer, working with his partner Rambo, seized the opium at the O’Hare Foreign Mail Facility on Tuesday night and Wednesday morning, according to a release from Customs.

While screening arriving international mail, Rambo alerted his handler to four separate shipments of opium, which had been soaked and dried onto wooden twigs and packed in dried leaves. The parcels, shipped from Laos and destined for Minneapolis, were labeled "Hmong Traditional Medicine Tea," the release said.

The officer opened the parcels to find a total of 273 plastic bags containing wood twigs and dried leaves. The twigs appeared to be saturated with an unknown substance that emitted a distinctive odor, which field tested positive for the presence of opiates, the release said.

Mug Shots: Attempted Escape Edition
The 273 bags, with a combined weight of just over 35 kilograms, marked the first opium seizures in 2010 by CBP officers at O’Hare, the release said.
But they were far from the first for Rambo. In 2009, the dog intercepted more than 195 kilograms of opiate material, the majority of which originated from Laos and were destined for Minnesota and Wisconsin, the release said. The investigations are ongoing.

"The efforts put forth by CBP K-9 officers and their partners continue to produce impressive results," David Murphy, CBP director of field operations in Chicago, said in the release.


Source: http://www.nbcchicago.com/news/local-beat/rambo-ohare-drug-bust-82314387.html#ixzz0rC1ZMUFq


Dog sniffs out opium-soaked wood chips at O'Hare
August 20, 2009 6:40 PM
A drug-sniffing dog named Rambo uncovered more than 10 pounds of opium-saturated wood chips and leaves in a package at Chicago's O'Hare International Airport, officials said today.

U.S. Customs and Border Protection officials said the parcel was found Tuesday at the airport's foreign mail facility.

The wood chips and leaves were found in 29 plastic bags. Officers said they tested positive for opiates.

The parcel was shipped from Laos and headed to a residence in St. Paul, Minn. It was marked "Lao Traditional Medicines."

The border protection agency said that since September, officers at the foreign mail facility have made more than 60 opium seizures weighing a total of 300 pounds.

http://www.chicagobreakingnews.com/2009/08/dog-sniffs-out-opium-soaked-wood-chips-at-ohare.html

Wis. Women Accused Of Receiving Opium In The Mail
01-10-2009
Wis. Women Accused Of Receiving 11 Pounds Of Twigs Soaked With Opium Through The Mail
(AP) Two women accused of receiving opium through the mail have been charged in Manitowoc County. In a court appearance on Wednesday, Sheng Lee, 23, was issued a $20,000 personal recognizance bond, and bail for 62-year-old Soua Vang of St. Paul, Minn., was set at $1,000.

The women were arrested Tuesday after drug-sniffing dogs detected drugs in a package marked for delivery to a Manitowoc home.

Police said Lee signed for the package and took it to her own home. Investigators executed a search warrant there and found the package, which contained about 11 pounds of twigs soaked with opium.

Online court records didn't list attorneys for either woman Thursday. Phone listings for the women could not be found.



http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2009/10/01/ap/strange/main5357178.shtml



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The Civil Guard seized six kilos of cocaine on a vessel berthed at the port of Marin

The Civil Guard seized six kilograms of cocaine on a ship of the Netherlands Antilles flag that had docked at the Port of Marín (Pontevedra), from Central America with scheduled stops at the ports of Rotterdam and Hamburg.

As reported in a statement Prefectures in Pontevedra, the seizure of cocaine, which was carried in six bags of one kilogram each, took place last Friday, June 4, following the ship's captain reported the discovery of drugs.

Thus, the ship's captain was informed of the Task Organized Crime and Drugs (EOA) of the Civil Guard had found six bags of cocaine and therefore opened an investigation to determine its origin and destination.

The proceedings initiated and seized cocaine were delivered in the Magistrate's Court number two of Marin, which has been the case



La Guardia Civil se incauta de 6 kilos de cocaína en un carguero atracado en el puerto de Marín



08-06-2010



Fue el propio capitán del mercante quien avisó a las autoridades del hallazgo de la droga a bordo

CARLOS GARCÍA - PONTEVEDRA La Guardia Civil de Pontevedra se incautó de un alijo de seis kilos de cocaína que viajaban a bordo de un buque mercante que realizaba tareas de carga y descarga en el puerto de Marín.
El decomiso se produjo el pasado viernes por la mañana aunque fue ayer cuando trascendió que se habían encontrado estos paquetes con droga en el interior del barco, el "Atlantic Reefer". Según confirmaron fuentes de la Comandancia de Pontevedra, fue el propio capitán del mercante quien dio la voz de alarma a la Guardia Civil mientras el buque estaba amarrado en el puerto marinense. Presentó una denuncia en la que advertía que se encontró a bordo con un bulto sospechoso que finalmente resultó esconder varios fardos con cocaína. En total eran seis paquetes que contenían un kilo de droga cada uno, aproximadamente.
Tras una inspección del barco, se procedió al decomiso de la droga. Finalizadas las labores de carga y descarga, el barco pudo abandonar el puerto de Marín con destino a Brujas. El Equipo contra la Delincuencia Organizada y Antidroga de la Guardia Civil de Pontevedra abrió una investigación para intentar aclarar el origen de la droga, así como identificar a sus destinatarios en Europa.
En los últimos años es cada vez más habitual introducir pequeñas partidas de droga escondidas entre la carga legal de los mercantes o en el interior de contenedores en lo que se conoce como el método del "gancho ciego". Con este "modus operandi" los narcotraficantes logran colar en los puertos de origen decenas de kilos de droga que esconden en medio de la carga legal. Cuentan con contactos en origen y también en los puertos de destino en donde la carga es retirada de tal forma que los propietarios de los buques y de la mercancía legal ni siquiera llegan a enterarse de que la droga llegó a viajar en el barco.
En el caso del "Atlantic Reefer", el buque había partido de Ecuador, un país de cuyos puertos salen muchos de estos envíos "ciegos" de droga. No obstante, el personal del barco descubrió con sorpresa el pequeño cargamento "oculto" que llevaban a bordo antes de que pudiera ser retirado en sus puertos de destino en Europa. Éstos eran Marín , Brujas y Hamburgo. Es precisamente en la rada belga en donde se encontraba atracadoayer el "Atlantic Reefer" tras su breve escala en la localidad portuaria pontevedresa.
En este caso, la carga legal que transportaba el "Atlantic Reefer" era fruta congelada. De hecho, no es la primera vez que el mercante arriba al puerto de Marín con este mismo tipo de transporte. Se trata de un barco con bandera de las Antillas Holandesas que realiza esta ruta con cierta regularidad. Ayer los controles policiales en la zona portuaria marinense se habían intensificado.
La investigación permanece abierta y sigue su curso aunque por el momento no se han producido detenidos, indicaron desde la Comandancia de la Guardia Civil. El juzgado número 2 de Marín se hizo cargo de las investigaciones.

http://www.farodevigo.es/portada-pontevedra/2010/06/08/guardia-civil-incauta-6-kilos-cocaina-carguero-atracado-puerto-marin/445796.html



The Civil Guard seizes six kilos of cocaine on a freighter docked in the port of Marin



La Guardia Civil de Pontevedra seized a cache of six kilos of cocaine aboard a merchant ship who perform loading and unloading at the port of Marin.
The seizure occurred on Friday morning though it was yesterday when it emerged that these packages were found with drugs inside the ship, the "Atlantic Reefer." According to confirmed sources Pontevedra Command, was the captain of the merchant who sounded the alarm to the Civil Guard while the vessel was docked in the port Marinens. He filed a complaint in which he warned was found on board a suspicious package was finally hide several bundles of cocaine. In total there were six packages containing a kilo of drugs each, approximately.
Following an inspection of the ship was confiscated drugs. Upon completion of the loading and unloading, the ship could leave the port of Marin bound to Bruges. Team Organized Crime and Narcotics Pontevedra Civil Guard initiated an investigation to try to clarify the origin of the drug, as well as identify their target in Europe.
In recent years, is increasingly common that minor drug consignments hidden in the legal burden of the merchant or inside containers in what is known as the method of "blind hook." With this "modus operandi" drug traffickers manage to sneak into the ports of origin tens of kilos of drugs hidden in the midst of the legal burden. They have contacts at home and at the ports of destination in which the load is removed so that the owners of the vessels and the legal goods do not even learn that the drug came to ride the boat.
In the case of "Atlantic Reefer", the ship had sailed from Ecuador, a country whose port shipments out many of these "blind" drug. However, the ship's staff was surprised to discover the small shipment "hidden" carrying on board before he could be removed at their ports of destination in Europe. These were Marín, Bruges and Hamburg. It is precisely in the road where he was Belgian atracadoayer the "Atlantic Reefer" after his brief stopover in the port town of Pontevedra.
In this case, the legal burden carrying the "Atlantic Reefer" was frozen fruit. In fact, it is not the first time that the top merchant at the port of Marin with the same type of transport. It is a vessel flying the flag of the Netherlands Antilles that does this route with some regularity. Yesterday police checks in the port area had been stepped Marinens.
The investigation remains open and is ongoing but so far there have not been arrested, said from the Commander of the Guardia Civil. The court number two Marin took over the investigations.


http://www.farodevigo.es/portada-pontevedra/2010/06/08/guardia-civil-incauta-6-kilos-cocaina-carguero-atracado-puerto-marin/445796.html



Atlantic Reefer
IMO: 9179256
Flag: Netherlands Antilles
Reg. Owner: Atlantic Reefer Shipping Co. B.V.
Type: Reefer
Place Country Area Arrival Sailed Details
Paramaribo Suriname S America - Atlantic 21/06/10 ETA
Rotterdam Netherlands N Cont Europe 11/06/10 12/06/10
Hamburg Germany N Cont Europe 08/06/10 10/06/10
Zeebrugge Belgium N Cont Europe 06/06/10 07/06/10
Marin Spain Iberian Atlantic 03/06/10 04/06/10
Panama Canal Panama Central America 24/05/10 24/05/10 Passed East
Guayaquil Ecuador S America - Pacific 21/05/10 21/05/10
Puerto Bolivar(ECU) Ecuador S America - Pacific 17/05/10 20/05/10

Skunk cannabis smuggled from Holland in flower boxes

By Steve Brodie
BBC West home affairs correspondent
The Dutch flower industry provided the ideal cover for a multi-million pound drug smuggling gang operating between Holland and Britain.

The ring, which has been smashed by police, was responsible for smuggling tonnes of skunk cannabis hidden in lorry loads of flowers from the Netherlands.

The gang based themselves in old buildings at Poplar farm in Wanborough, near Swindon, Wiltshire.

When police struck last year they seized 10 tonnes of skunk with an estimated street value of £30m.

Eight men and a woman were arrested during the investigation, which involved detectives from Wiltshire and their Dutch counterparts.

Gang leader David Barnes, 41, from Hungerford, Berkshire, was the mastermind behind the operation which supplied dealers throughout England and the Irish Republic.

Perfect conditions
The flower-growing industry of Holland provides the perfect set of conditions and ideal cover for growing cannabis and for exporting the drugs.

Where you can grow tulips, you can grow cannabis - and the dealers took advantage of the flower trade to ship their haul to the UK.

After buying boxes of cut flowers at the giant international flower market at Naaldwijk near The Haig, the gang would then take them to their own warehouses before placing the bags of cannabis beneath the flowers.

Det Sgt Thom Hoekstra of the Dutch police said: "You've got the chrysanthemum, which is a long flower with a long stem.

"The flower itself was cut off by about 10cm from the top and 10cm from the bottom, so as you check the box, you can put your hand in and you feel the flowers, but as you reach more into the box itself, you find the plastic bags with the cannabis."

The couriers drove their lorries to The Hook of Holland and then on to ferries bound for Harwich.

With hundreds of lorries leaving and arriving each day, it is impossible for UK customs to search every one.

But in March 2009, acting on intelligence, Wiltshire detectives stopped Michael Woodage's white van on the M4 after he had left Poplar farm. Inside they discovered 50kg of cannabis.

The seizure of millions of pounds of cannabis, tens of thousands of pounds of cash and the smashing of an international drugs ring is seen as a major victory for Wiltshire detectives and their Dutch colleagues.

Det Ch Insp Owen Gillard who led the Wiltshire investigation said: "It's not something I've seen in my policing career and probably won't do again.

"It's a very, very, significant find, just the complexity of the operation, security, the measures that Barnes put in place for straight law enforcement activity which he'd done very well.

"He'd obviously been doing it for 14 weeks and we didn't have a clue he was doing it at the time."

Three members of the gang were convicted of supplying Class B drugs at Bristol Crown Court on Friday.

Four other men and a woman had previously pleaded guilty to conspiracy to supply Class B drugs.

They will all be sentenced at a later date.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/england/wiltshire/10328761.stm

Ecuadorian Police Seize Over 1 Ton of Cocaine Bound for Spain

QUITO – Drug enforcement agents seized more than one ton of cocaine in a container bound for Spain and arrested a suspect, Ecuadorian television reported.

The cocaine was hidden in a furniture shipment at the port in Guayaquil, a city in southwestern Ecuador, Canal Uno television said.

Drug enforcement agents found 1,042 bales of cocaine weighing just over 1.1 tons, the television station reported, citing police spokesmen.

http://laht.com/article.asp?ArticleId=358723&CategoryId=14089

Droga era oculta con láminas de plomo para no ser detectada
Tiempo de lectura: 1'52'' | No. de palabras: 281
Redacción Guayaquil

Narcotráfico | 16:43 - martes 15/06/2010
Narcotraficantes utilizaron láminas de plomo para intentar enviar una tonelada de droga a España, desde el Puerto Marítimo de Guayaquil.

Ese metal actuaba como escudo para evitar que el alcaloide sea detectado por los scanner, empleados en los controles portuarios, para la salida de mercadería del país.

El descubrimiento de la carga ocurrió el 12 junio pasado, en ocho baúles que estaban dentro del contenedor No. MSKU9123608, que contenía también anaqueles, armarios y otros muebles de madera.

Su propietario era Jhonny Stalin G.M., una persona natural que tenía previsto enviarlos a España, vía marítima. Era su primera exportación, cuya magnitud llamó la atención de las autoridades.

“Al cotejar los datos nos dimos cuenta que era un comprador de frutas y en ese momento exportador. No hubo ninguna actividad que diga que era exportador de buena fe”, explicó Joel Loaiza, director nacional Antinarcóticos.

Los baúles estaban recubiertos en su interior con el plomo. Además, tenían exagerado peso y seguridad. La droga estaba distribuida en bloques pequeños.

Fausto Herrera, encargado de la Jefatura Antinarcóticos del Guayas, manifestó que los paquetes tenían tres logotipos: uno similar a una reconocida marca de vehículos, otro de un búho y un tercero de la letra M.

“El primero está relacionado con el operativo Aniversario, que dejó ocho toneladas de droga decomisada, en agosto pasado…”, expresó Loaiza.

La Fiscalía y la Policía realizan todavía investigaciones y buscan a otros responsables de esta acción. La carga está valorada en USD 60 millones. Este es el segundo decomiso de alcaloide más grande de este año. El primero fue en mayo pasado, al norte de Manabí, con dos toneladas.
http://www.elcomercio.com/2010-06-15/Noticias/Judicial/Noticias-Secundarias/droga-guayaquil.aspx

Drugs were hidden with sheets of lead to undetected

Drug dealers lead sheets used to try to send a ton of drugs to Spain, from the seaport of Guayaquil.

That metal acted as a shield to prevent the alkaloid is detected by the scanner, used in port control, for output of goods in the country.

The discovery of the charge occurred on 12 June, eight trunks that were in the container No. MSKU9123608, also containing shelves, cabinets and other wood furniture.

Its owner was Stalin Jhonny GM, an individual who planned to send to Spain by sea. It was his first export, the magnitude drew the attention of the authorities.

"By matching the data, we realized it was a fruit seller at which point the exporter. There was no business saying that was an exporter of good faith, "said Joel Loaiza, national director narcotics.

The trunks were coated inside with lead. In addition, weight and safety were exaggerated. The drug was distributed in small blocks.

Fausto Herrera, in charge of Narcotics Chief of Guayas, said the package had three logos: one similar to a known brand car, another of an owl and a third of the letter M.

"The first relates to the operation Anniversary, killing eight tons of drugs seized last August ..." said Loaiza.

The prosecution and police still do research and seek out others responsible for this action. The cargo is valued at USD 60 million. This is the second largest seizure of alkaloid this year. The first was in May, north of Manabi, with two tons.

Regional workshop against drug trafficking starts in Turkey

Tuesday, 15 June 2010

Regional workshop against drug trafficking has begun in Istanbul with the participation of ministers and experts from Turkey, Syria, Saudi Arabia, Lebanon and Jordan.

The "First Regional Workshop on Fight against Illicit Drug Trafficking" has begun in Istanbul with the participation of ministers and experts from Turkey, Syria, Saudi Arabia, Lebanon and Jordan.

Making opening remarks of the workshop, Ahmet Pek from the Turkish Security Department said that fight against synthetic drugs required a very serious cooperation among regional countries.

"Traffickers use a route from the west to the east via Turkey to send synthetic drugs. We have to cooperate for a successful fight against drug trafficking. The workshop aims at creating a network to share our experiences. We also have to share scientific and technological developments. Thousands of law enforcement officers from 63 countries have received training at the Turkish International Academy Against Drugs and Organized Crimes since 2000," he added.

The workshop will end on June 17.
http://www.worldbulletin.net/news_detail.php?id=59985
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SOCA helps secure record West African cocaine haul

09 June 2010

SOCA has provided expertise and forensic support to the Gambian National Drugs Enforcement Agency (NDEA) which has resulted in the seizure of 2,100 kilos of cocaine. The seizure – a record for West Africa - would be worth more than £100m at UK wholesale prices. The potential street value would be many times higher depending on how much the criminals diluted the cocaine with ‘cutting agents’.

SOCA officers were called in to assist with the forensic examination of a number of locations which had been identified by the Gambian NDEA as suspected drugs warehouses because of suspicious activity in rural areas.

In May 2010, the NDEA recovered three kilos of cocaine and arrested 12 suspects. The suspects included the Dutch owner and Venezuelan employees of a Gambian based fishing company which had a number of premises including exclusive use of a small island where they made use of a dilapidated hotel and set up communications and transport systems.

Working with the Gambian NDEA, SOCA conducted forensic examinations of various locations, electronic equipment and took samples of drugs recovered during earlier searches. SOCA officers helped recover more than €210,000 in €500 notes and a number of loaded firearms. They also located a previously undiscovered underground bunker concealed behind a false wall in a warehouse used by the fishing company in the Bonto area. When the bunker was investigated on the evening of 4th June 2010, 85 sacks were discovered containing a total of 2,100 kilos of cocaine ‘bricks’ as well as around 60 empty sacks, indicating that the bunker has been used as a distribution centre.

Neil Giles, Deputy Director for SOCA, commented:

“It has long been feared that cocaine traffickers might seek to exploit the Gambia and other countries in the region as a warehousing locations for drugs en route from South America to Europe. This seizure is highly significant in that it clearly demonstrates the commitment of law enforcement in Gambia to tackle the traffickers head on. SOCA are pleased to be able to assist this excellent work and are working to increase the law enforcement capacity across the region.
"It is highly likely a large proportion of these drugs would have found their way onto the streets of Europe and the UK. Taking this cocaine, and the profits that it would have generated, out of the hands of criminals is a major blow to their operations.”

http://www.soca.gov.uk/news/237-soca-helps-secure-record-west-african-cocaine-haul

Feds find cocaine worth about $2M at Delaware port

The Associated Press
WILMINGTON, Del. -- Federal authorities have seized about 63 pounds of cocaine, with an estimated street value of up to $2 million, hidden in a refrigerated shipping container at the Port of Wilmington.

Authorities say Customs and Border Protection officers were conducting an inspection on June 6 when they found two brick-like objects concealed in the ventilation system of a container of bananas. They subsequently found a total of 26 bricks with a wholesale value of about $750,000 and street value of up to $2 million.

Officials say the bananas arrived on board a ship that routinely brings fresh produce from Central America to Wilmington and stops in Colombia, Costa Rica and Honduras before traveling to Fort Lauderdale, Fla., and Wilmington.

Law enforcement officials are continuing to investigate.

http://www.miamiherald.com/2010/06/14/1679904/feds-find-cocaine-worth-about.html

Moroccan drug ring uses divers to smuggle hashish to Spain

Spanish police have discovered a drug ring using divers to help bring hashish from Morocco to Spain, police said Thursday, describing the method as unprecedented.

The ring transported drug cargoes across the Mediterranean to near Estepona on the southern Spanish coast, then lowered the hashish bundles to a depth of about 20 metres on the sea bed.

Helpers in Spain sent divers to locate the drug and to mark it with a buoy. The next day, a diver attached the drug bundles to a jetski, which pulled the packages closer to the beach and then were lifted from the water.

Police arrested eight people and seized 1.6 tonnes of hashish, 700 kg of which were retrieved from the sea.

Morocco is the world's second-largest hashish producer after Afghanistan. Drug traffickers have traditionally used speedboats to take drug loads directly to beaches in Spain, which acts as gateway for Moroccan hashish into the European market.



http://sify.com/news/moroccan-drug-ring-uses-divers-to-smuggle-hashish-to-spain-news-international-kgkq4ccfaja.html

Greece seizes heroin, arrests Macedonian

10 June 2010
ATHENS - Greek police said Thursday they seized 74.5 kilograms (164 pounds) of heroin and arrested a Macedonian national on suspicion of smuggling the drug in the fuel tank of his truck.

The 28-year-old suspect “is the member of a gang based in Macedonia and smuggling large quantities of heroin from Turkey to western Europe”, a police statement said.

Drug squad officers moved after a tip-off.

The man was arrested on a motorway rest area where he had parked his truck.

http://www.khaleejtimes.com/displayarticle.asp?xfile=data/international/2010/June/international_June460.xml§ion=international&col=

2 Foreigners Charged in Gambia Cocaine Burst

The Senegambia News Team, Senegambia News

Published 06/09/2010 - 10:21 p.m. GMT



Gambian authorities have charged twelve foreign nationals with drug trafficking after the country's Drug Enforcement agents uncovered three packages of cocaine worth over US$1 billion hidden in a warehouse.



The packages weighed over a ton.

The accused person: Varela Fernando, a Cape Verdean; Rudy Rasoalhamid Ghazi, a Dutch national; Godwin Barset, a Ghanaian/Sierra Leonean national; Maimuna Sesay, a Nigerian/Sierra Leonean national; Jorge Ivan Sanchez-Tabares, a Mexican/Liberian national; Dennis Wilgo Winter, a Dutch national, Ephiam Micheal Chidubem, a Nigerian; and Juan Carlos Sanchez Eric Porping, Luis Dose Fermin, Esledan Zuala, George Ivan Sanchez Juan Carlos Diaz, all Venezuelans. They denied all the charges before Magistrate Hillary Ubeke in Banjul on Wednesday.



Details of Charges

Count one: Conspiracy to commit an offense contrary to Section 53, Volume 1, Chapter (A) of the Drug Control Act. The statement of offense stated that the twelve accused persons on or about 12th May 2010, at Brufut and other places within the jurisdiction of the Republic of The Gambia, conspired to have in their possession three parcels of cocaine - a prohibited drug weighing 3 Kilograms 36G and thereby committed an offense.



Count two: Dealing in prohibited drugs for the purpose of supply by retail or whole sale; transport or transfer contrary to section 33, Volume 1, chapter (C) of the Drug Control Act 2003. The statement of offense stated that the twelve accused persons on or about 12th May 2010 , at Brufut and other places within the jurisdiction of the Republic of The Gambia, conspired to have in their possession three parcels of cocaine - a prohibited drug weighing 3 KG 36G for the purpose of supply by retail or wholesale, transport or transfer as an occupation or business and thereby committed an offense.



Count three: On or about 12th May 2010, at Brufut and other places within the jurisdiction of the Republic of The Gambia, conspired to have in their possession three parcels of cocaine - a prohibited drug weighing 3 KG 36G for the purpose of trafficking and thereby committed an offense.

After the charges were read to the twelve accused persons, including a woman, they all pleaded not guilty. They accused persons were not represented in court by any attorney.

Chief Inspector Abdoulie Ceesay, Sub-Inspector Jallow and R. Jarju appeared for the State.

Magistrate Ubeke denied the suspects bail and ordered that they be remanded in custody. She however informed them that they should apply for bail at the High Court.



The case will resume on 30th June 2010.



http://www.senegambianews.com/article/Latest_News/Latest_News/12_Foreigners_Charged_in_Gambia_Cocaine_Burst/19186

Report: Drug trafficking via Turkey on the rise

12-06-2010

Turkish authorities confiscated 31 percent more illegal substances in 2009 than the previous year, in a sign of increasing drug trafficking activities using Turkey as a thoroughfare, new data from the National Police Department’s Anti-Organized Crime and Smuggling Department show.

Marijuana is the most frequently used illegal substance in Turkey and also the substance police seize most frequently in drug busts. Police data indicate a significant increase in both the amount of marijuana seized and the number of operations and arrests made in connection with marijuana possession and trafficking in 2009: a 25.2 percent increase over the previous year in the amount of marijuana seized, a 32.1 percent increase in marijuana drug-bust operations and a 27.1 percent increase in individuals charged with marijuana-related offenses. As for those most frequently caught trafficking marijuana, Iranian and Syrian nationals lead the list.
As for opium, 95 percent of the illegal substance seized by security forces in Turkey last year was impounded in provinces along the Iranian border; the other 5 percent was caught while in transit to Ýstanbul.

Heroin was mostly seized by police (95 percent) in the areas of Van, Hakkari and Aðrý along the Iranian border, with a segment of this being seized in drug busts, while the heroin was en route to Ýstanbul from these provinces through Bitlis and Erzincan. The other 5 percent of heroin was seized in anti-drug operations in Ýstanbul, Edirne and Ýzmir.

Meanwhile, ships with the right of free passage through the Ýstanbul and Çanakkale straits are an increasingly popular option for trafficking cocaine.

Thus drug trafficking in Turkey -- which seized more illegal substances in the years 2007 and 2008 than all European nations combined -- has hit an all-time high, when counted in drug busts.

Trafficking falls in Afghanistan, on the rise in Turkey
According to the Anti-Organized Crime and Smuggling Department’s data, 9,078 kilograms of heroin were seized in Turkey in 2007, followed by 10,332 kilograms in 2008 and 12,234 kilograms in 2009.

Security forces’ investigations into the sources of drugs trafficked through Turkey show that despite a drop in drug production in Afghanistan, there has been an increase in the amount of illegal substances entering Turkey. Opium production in Afghanistan fell by 6.1 percent in 2007, by 10.4 percent in 2008 and by a further 18.4 percent in 2009. This was paralleled by a drop in the amount of Afghanistan-sourced drugs caught in Turkey of 21 percent.

The drop in drug output from Afghanistan is largely attributable to the banning of drug cultivation in six Afghan states following the American invasion of the country, dropping Afghanistan’s export of drugs to world nations by 20 percent. The Anti-Organized Crime and Smuggling Department says that while in 2008 drug rings turned to Myanmar as the new production ground for drugs, in 2009 this activity began to be shifted to areas in China’s northeast.

Ýstanbul, Çanakkale straits new pathways for smuggling cocaine
All of the cocaine smuggling operations busted by Turkish security forces took place in Ýstanbul. Police say that the Ýstanbul and Çanakkale straits are the routes of choice for cocaine smugglers, who opt to utilize Bulgarian and Romanian-flagged ships, which have the right of free passage through the straits, to transport cocaine shipments to Russia.

Police teams said that in 2009 over one ton of cocaine was seized in Greece, noting that in connection with this, cocaine was smuggled through the Turkish straits and out through the Black Sea.

The police also determined that seizures of illegal captagon pills increased by 2 percent in 2009 over the previous year, while the number of individuals detained in connection with this drug increased by 111.1 percent. Similarly, 2009 saw a 56.2 percent increase in the amount of ecstasy seized in Turkey over 2008, matched with an increase of 73 percent in the detention of individuals in connection with its trafficking.

In operations against synthetic drugs, Turkey saw its first bust of 76 kilograms of methamphetamine in 2009. This substance is mostly produced in East and Southeast Asia, North America and Oceania, and there is no indication that it is widely used in Turkey; security forces say the drug is being shipped from Iran through Turkey using air cargo. Twelve operations against methamphetamine trafficking resulted in the detention of 29 Iranians and -- for the first time -- five Japanese nationals.


12 June 2010, Saturday


ERCAN YAVUZ ANKARA

http://www.todayszaman.com/tz-web/news-212869-101-report-drug-trafficking-via-turkey-on-the-rise.html?

5 kilos of cocaine found in batch beans on Schiphol-airport

5 kilo cocaïne aangetroffen in partij sperziebonen
9 juni 2010, 16.25 uur

Tijdens een 100%-controle op Schiphol is afgelopen zondag 5 kilo cocaïne aangetroffen in een partij sperziebonen. De 23-jarige Nederlandse verdachte wekte tijdens de controle argwaan bij de douane omdat hij een grote hoeveelheid groente in zijn bagage vervoerde.

De douane droeg de verdachte over aan het rechercheteam drugsbestrijding van de Koninklijke Marechaussee. Na controle van het rechercheteam, in de uitpakruimte op Schiphol-Zuidoost, bleek maar liefst 5,2 kilo cocaïne verstopt te zitten in de bonen. De verdachte zit vast voor verder onderzoek.

http://www.defensie.nl/marechaussee/actueel/nieuws/2010/06/09/46163642/5_kilo_cocaine_aangetroffen_in_partij_sperziebonen

5 kilos of cocaine found in batch beans
June 9, 2010, 16.25

During a 100% inspection at the airport last Sunday, 5 kilos of cocaine was found in one batch green beans. The 23-year old Dutch suspect aroused suspicion during the inspection at customs because he was a large amount of vegetables in his luggage carried.

Customs ordered the suspect to the investigation team from the Royal Military Police Drugs. After verification of the search team at Schiphol-Southeast, 5.2 kilo's of cocaine was found, hidden inside the beans. The suspect is in custody for further investigation

Hungary border agents seize heroin worth millions of euros

Hungary border agents seize heroin worth millions of euros

9 June 2010 | 20:06 | FOCUS News Agency

Bugapest. Hungarian border control agents seized heroin worth EUR 3.5 million stashed in the boot of a car and arrested two Bulgarian nationals, authorities announced Wednesday, AFP reported.
The heroin was discovered at the Nagylak border with Romania, they said.
Officials checking the boot became suspicious when the spare tyre appeared oversized and out of position, a Hungarian Border Control Agency spokeswoman told AFP.
On removing the wheel, they discovered fresh welding under the tyre which they broke, leading to the discovery of 134 packages containing more than 70 kilogrammes (154 pounds) of heroin worth HUF 1 billion (EUR 3.5 million/USD 4.22 million).
"Two Bulgarian nationals are in custody following a roadside spot check by border patrols on their Fiat type car with Bulgarian number plates," the spokeswoman said.


http://www.focus-fen.net/index.php?id=n222253

Cocaine worth $1bn seized in The Gambia

Tuesday, 8 June 2010 17:11 UK

At least two tonnes of cocaine with a street value of some $1bn has been seized in The Gambia, bound for Europe.
In addition to the huge haul of drugs, the Gambian authorities have arrested a dozen suspected traffickers, and seized large quantities of cash and arms.

Gambian investigators made the first arrests then called in British agents to gather forensic evidence.

West Africa has become a major transit hub for trafficking Latin American drugs to markets in Europe.

Drugs cartels are taking advantage of the region's poverty and weak security and judicial systems.

Agents from the UK's Serious Organised Crime Agency - the rough equivalent of the US FBI - helped discover the haul of highly concentrated cocaine behind a false wall in a warehouse basement an hour's drive from the Gambian capital, Banjul.

Numerous revealing computer records were also found.

One investigator closely involved told the BBC: "We're excited about this one - we've got all the elements here."

The BBC's Mark Doyle in Banjul says some of the Gambian officers involved in the bust are clearly pleased, if saying nothing in public for now.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/world/africa/10268510.stm

MAJOR COCAINE “CATCH” IN GAMBIA

Lebanese Timber Factory Transformed Into A Cocaine Zone
As Joint Security Team Raid Led Land Proprietor In Trouble

By Staff Reporter Bakary Gibba, Banjul

The impoverished nation of the Gambia is gradually becoming a safe-haven for drug cartel networks—notably drug dealers from South America, Guinea Bissau, and the country’s indigenous local citizens who used the West African country to traffic cocaine and other dangerous drugs, the Freedom Newspaper can report. A massive joint security operation Friday, June 4th led to the confiscation of a huge consignment of cocaine—that was hidden at Muktharr Trading Store—situated between Bonto village and Pirang in the Kombo East District, West Region of the Gambia, intelligence sources said.

Muktharr Trading, is engaged in timber sale in The Gambia. The company is owned by a Lebanese born business tycoon Mr. Muktharr. Mr. Muktaharr is a close associate of President Yahya Jammeh. His company is partly responsible for the country’s dwindling flora and fauna.

The raiding team which consist of Military, police, NIA and officials of the National Drug Enforcement Agency—known as (NDEA) received a tip off that a large consignment of cocaine were hidden at the Muktaharr timber factory. This led to the confiscation of the drugs. Although, no one has claimed ownership of the confiscated cocaine, investigators said.

The owner of the timber factory is helping police with their investigators. He has denied having knowledge about the said cocaine even though it was found in his business property, police said.

The Friday raid, said a member of the raiding team is one of the country’s biggest cocaine catch ever in the history of the Jammeh administration. The official said he suspects that there is a bigger network infiltrating Banjul as a drug transit point.

“ The proprietor of the Muktaharr company is very close to the President. I’m sure the President would be upset to learn that Mr. Muktaharr’s factory has been transformed into a cocaine zone. We are still trying to gather bit and pieces as to the whereabouts of those responsible for smuggling of the large quantity of cocaine into the country,” said a source close to the team investigating the incident.

According to our source “cocaine is now rampant in the Gambia. We have more cocaine in this country than marijuana. This is a disturbing situation. Someone out there is benefiting from the cocaine trafficking. There are powerful officials involved in the deal, that I can confirm to you.”

It would be recalled the arrest of the former anti narcotic chief, and other NDEA officials led to the discovery of the cocaine zones across the country.

Of recent at Kuloro in the same area, some high profile arrests were made. The Eco-Tourist Centre Sita Joyeh was raided and some Spanish and Gambian Nationals were rounded up who were accused of cocaine trafficking.

http://www.freedomnewspaper.com/Homepage/tabid/36/mid/367/newsid367/5309/Breaking-News-Gambia-MAJOR-COCAINE-CATCH-IN-GAMBIA-/Default.aspx

European probe hits Nigerian cocaine ring: Swiss police

07-06-2010

Swiss police said Monday that 17 people had been been arrested after a Nigerian cocaine trafficking network in Europe was dismantled in a 10-month joint investigation with Dutch and French police.

The traffickers managed to smuggle about 50 kilogrammes of cocaine into Switzerland worth some 5.5 million Swiss francs (3.9 million euros, 4.7 million dollars), police in the canton of Vaud said in a statement.

At least 30 kilos was taken elsewhere in Europe by two Polish alleged couriers, but Vaud police spokesman Jean-Christophe Sauterel said the full amount smuggled by the network was likely to be higher.

"Investigations are underway in France and the Netherlands, that's another parallel probe," he told AFP.

The investigations began after Swiss border guards found 3.2 kilos of the drug hidden in cartons of Dutch mineral water on an express train from Paris in May 2009.


http://www.expatica.com/ch/news/swiss-news/european-probe-hits-nigerian-cocaine-ring-swiss-police_74379.html

Cocaine gel found hidden in suitcase

Agence France-Presse June 6, 2010
A Colombian man was detained Saturday in Brazil after police discovered a gel made of cocaine hidden in one of his bags checked on a flight about to take off for Spain, reports said.

Edgar Eduardo Monroy Vargas, 30, of Madrid, Colombia, was arrested at Rio de Janeiro's Jobim International Airport, the reports said, citing police.

X-rays detected the cocaine gel inserted into the sides of a wooden suitcase.

http://www.calgaryherald.com/Cocaine+found+hidden+suitcase/3118523/story.html

Seizure of 1003 herbal cannabis

More than a tonne of herbal cannabis seized by the customs of the Channel Tunnel in a load of flowers

Montreuil, June 4, 2010

The customs of the Channel Tunnel were seized last Friday, May 27, 1003 kilograms of herbal cannabis in a vehicle combination from the Netherlands and from Great Britain. The value of the goods is estimated at more than 7 million euros on the illicit market for resale of drugs. By itself, this seizure represents nearly 60% of the total quantities of herbal cannabis intercepted by Customs during 2009, 1.7 tonne.

At 21:30, customs officers stopped a truck for inspection and trailer towed occur in the departure area for Great Britain. At the opening of the trailer, they have discovered the presence of 14 wheeled carts, each with three shelves. The high shelf stand pots of flowers and other shelves, closed boxes usually used for transporting flowers. In the latter they have discovered heat-sealed packages containing herbal cannabis. The drug was distributed in 75 boxes.

The driver, a man of British nationality, has been handed over to police after withholding customs. The JIRS of Lille before it.

In 2009, the French customs officials seized 1.7 tons of cannabis herb and 35.9 metric tons of cannabis resin.

Large mobile illicit drugs laboratory identified in Belgium

The Hague - The Netherlands.

With the support of Europol, the Belgian Hasselt Federal Police have dismantled a large sophisticated mobile illicit drug laboratory in Tessenderlo in the Limburg Province of Belgium. Europol contributed to the successful operation with coordinated analysis and "on-the-spot" technical support.

On 8 May 2010 the Hasselt Federal Police, in close cooperation with Europol, dismantled the illicit drug laboratory, which had the potential to produce synthetic drugs with a street value of more than 30 million euros per day. Six main suspects were arrested in Belgium – among those were two Belgian and four Dutch citizens. Later that day, a seventh person was arrested in Brussels. Large quantities of chemicals (e.g. caustic soda, formic acid and formamide) were also seized. The criminals had already produced around 100 litres of amphetamine oil and another batch of 100 litres was in production.

At the same time as this operation, judicial authorities in the Netherlands conducted house searches and seized more synthetic drugs, cocaine, large amounts of money and large quantities of chemicals.

On 26-27 May 2010 Europol, together with Dutch specialists, provided detailed technical analysis and "on-the-spot" expertise which will enable Belgian authorities to better tackle the large–scale organisation behind the illicit drug laboratory.

In line with the COSPOL (Comprehensive, Operational, Strategic, Planning for the Police) Synthetic Drugs Action Plan, Europol and its cooperation partners will continue targeting persons and criminal organisations in Europe that are active in synthetic drug production.

http://www.europol.europa.eu/index.asp?page=news&news=pr100531.htm

Council calls on EU scientific experts to assess risks of mephedrone

27.05.2010)
New drug placed under official scrutiny across Europe
Europe has responded to rising concern over the use of the synthetic drug mephedrone by formally requesting a scientific investigation into the health and social risks of the substance. The decision was communicated to the EMCDDA by the Council of the EU today, in line with a legal procedure designed to respond to potentially threatening new psychoactive drugs in the EU.

The risk-assessment exercise, which will result in a report by end-July, will be undertaken by the EMCDDA Scientific Committee, with the participation of additional experts from the EU Member States, European Commission, Europol and the European Medicines Agency (EMA). The exercise constitutes the second phase in the three-step legal procedure: (i) information exchange/early-warning; (ii) risk assessment; and (iii) decision-making/control.

Today’s decision is based on the findings of a ‘Europol–EMCDDA joint report on a new psychoactive substance: 4-methylmethcathinone (mephedrone)’, submitted in late March to the Council of the EU, the European Commission and the EMA, concluding Step I of the process. The report is released today.

Related links
Download the Europol–EMCDDA joint report on mephedrone
See news release No 4/2010: Council calls on EU scientific experts to assess risks of mephedrone
Monitoring new drugs brochure
http://www.emcdda.europa.eu

Man Arrested in Relation to the Importation of 343 kilos of Cocaine Concealed in Ceramic Tiles

Canada Border Services Agency officers seize over $42 million worth of cocaine
RCMP arrest one person in joint investigation

Halifax, Nova Scotia, June 01, 2010 - The Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) announced today that CBSA officers found and seized over 300 kilograms of cocaine at the Port of Halifax, Nova Scotia. The drugs have an estimated street value of over $42 million. An investigation by the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) in Halifax and Montréal led to one arrest.

"Once again, outstanding cooperation between the CBSA and RCMP has resulted in keeping these suspected illegal drugs off our streets, and out of our communities," said the Honourable Vic Toews, Canada’s Minister of Public Safety. "The tools our government is giving our law enforcement to help build stronger communities are working. I congratulate all those involved in this significant seizure."

On November 9, 2009, while conducting marine container examinations, CBSA officers discovered the drugs in a marine container that originated in Venezuela. With the assistance of x-ray technology, officers found 1,284 packages of suspected cocaine in 76 boxes of ceramic tiles in the 20-foot marine container. Each tile was covered with a fibre glass backing containing two packages of suspected cocaine in the hollowed portion of each tile. Each package weighed an average of 260 grams.

The National Ports Enforcement Team, composed of the CBSA, RCMP and Halifax Regional Police, worked jointly on this investigation over the past several months. Seizures like this demonstrate the effectiveness of law enforcement agencies working together in the fight against illegal drugs.

http://www.cbsa-asfc.gc.ca/media/prosecutions-poursuites/atl/2010-06-01-eng.html

Man Arrested in Relation to the Importation of 343 kilos of Cocaine Concealed in Ceramic Tiles
Montréal, Tuesday, June 1st, 2010 – This morning, as a result of a short investigation, officers of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police Drug Section arrested Michel Safar, a 47-year-old Montréal business man, for the alleged possession for the purpose of trafficking of 343 kilos of cocaine originating from Venezuela.

On November 9, 2009, the Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) targeted a container at the Port of Halifax because of anomalies. There were 647 cases of ceramic tiles in the container in question, that was destined for the Montréal area. CBSA officers examined the content and discovered cocaine concealed in the hollowed portion of ceramic tiles.

Following a preliminary investigation by the Halifax RCMP National Port Enforcement Team (NPET), the case was handed over to the Montréal RCMP Drug Section. The preliminary information obtained in the investigation identified Michel Safar, owner of a renovation company, as being involved in this case. In December 2009, a search was conducted at Safar’s business. Evidence seized during the search helped further the investigation and led to this morning’s arrest.

Charges of possession for the purpose of trafficking under the Controlled Drugs and Substances Act were filed against Safar. He should appear in court in Montréal tomorrow. The investigation is still ongoing to identify other individuals who could be involved in this import attempt.

The partners in this morning’s operation will continue their efforts to reduce drug trafficking in Canada and disrupt the illicit activities of organized crime groups.

The RCMP would like to remind that illegal drug trafficking is a global, borderless phenomenon with serious economic and social effects. The RCMP will continue its efforts to reduce drug trafficking in Canada and disrupt organized crime groups by dismantling the infrastructure of these organizations and undermining their ability to use our communities to engage in criminal activity.

http://www.rcmp-grc.gc.ca/qc/nouv-news/com-rel/2010/06/100601-eng.htm

Cutter crew's colossal cocaine catch

Three men charged for importing cocaine found attached to lobster pots
03 June 2010

Three men arrested following the recovery of approximately 300kilos of cocaine attached to lobster pots off the coast of the Isle of Wight have been charged with conspiracy to import Class A drugs and remanded I custody.

The charges follow an extensive joint operation by officers of the joint SOCA – Metropolitan Police Middle Market Drugs Project, the UK Border Agency and Hampshire Police.

While on patrol in international waters on Sunday 30th May, the UKBA cutter HMC Vigilant observed the Galwad-Y-Mor SU116 acting suspiciously.

Considerable surveillance was carried out over the course of the bank holiday weekend and later that Sunday the same vessel was observed acting in a suspicious manner in Freshwater Bay off the coast of Isle of Wight. The vessel docked at Yarmouth, Isle of Wight, and the three men were subsequently arrested.

On the morning of Monday 31 May, officers attended a location off Tennyson Point, Isle of Wight, and recovered 11 rucksacks containing approximately 30kg cocaine each.

Two of the men charged are local to the Isle of Wight; the third is a Croatian national.

http://www.soca.gov.uk/news/236-three-men-charged-for-importing-cocaine-found-attached-to-lobster-pots

Cutter crew's colossal cocaine catch
02 June 2010

One of the UK Border Agency's coastal patrol boats, HM Cutter Vigilant, has lived up to its name by seizing an estimated 300kg of cocaine off thesouth coast of the Isle of Wight in gale-force conditions.

Officers from the UK Border Agency, the Serious Organised Crime Agency and Hampshire Police discovered the drugs in 11 rucksacks attached to a buoy off Tennyson Point, close to where a fishing vessel was spotted acting suspiciously over the bank holiday weekend.

Three people were arrested on the Galwad-Y-Mor SU116 fishing vessel in Yarmouth, and have been charged with conspiracy to import cocaine into the UK.


Doug McLellan, assistant director for the UK Border Agency's maritime and aviation operations, said:

'This was a great job from the Vigilant team, demonstrating how well we work with colleagues in other agencies and showing what a vital role the cutter fleet plays in protecting our border.'

HMC Vigilant is one of five UK Border Agency cutters (patrol boats) protecting the UK border and providing offshore support all year round.

http://www.ukba.homeoffice.gov.uk/sitecontent/newsarticles/2010/268071/04-cutter-crewdryg-catch

Some 100 kg heroin revealed in Poti port

03.06.2010 16:27

Georgia, Tbilisi, June 3 / Trend, N.Kirtskhalia /
A large batch of heroin was found in the Poti port. According to the Rustavi-2 television company, the heroin was delivered May 26 by the ship 'Rock Age" under the flag of Antigua and Barbuda.

The ship has already left the port May 28, and check of the cargo - technical equipment - was conducted later, then 100 kilograms of heroin was revealed.

The Port administration claims that knows nothing about this case, as a check of the cargo was conducted by the Georgian Interior Ministry's employees.

Owners of the cargo have been arrested, but their names are unknown.

http://en.trend.az/news/politics/foreign/1698876.html

Georgia Busts Cocaine Ring as 2 Million Euros Cash Found Buried

June 03, 2010, 9:26 AM EDT
By Helena Bedwell
June 3 (Bloomberg) -- Georgian police broke up a criminal ring that was smuggling cocaine from South America through the former Soviet republic to Europe, discovering about 2 million euros buried in a western village in the process.

“The cash came from selling as much as 90 kilograms of cocaine from countries like Panama, Colombia and Peru,” Interior Ministry spokesman Shota Utiashvili told reporters in the capital Tbilisi today. “The drugs were hidden among scrap metal that arrived at Poti,” a Black Sea port, he said.

Police have detained as many as five members of the gang, Utiashvili said. Authorities suspect that Georgian criminals living abroad are involved, he said, adding that a team of Georgian detectives will travel to Spain as part of their investigation.

The money was found buried in the village of Geguti in the Tsqaltubo region, Utiashvili said.

--Editor: Patrick G. Henry

http://www.businessweek.com/news/2010-06-03/georgia-busts-cocaine-ring-as-2-million-euros-cash-found-buried.html

Police Say Cocaine Trafficker Suspects Arrested


Civil Georgia, Tbilisi / 3 Jun.'10 / 17:04

Georgian Interior Ministry said on Thursday it had detained five members of “international drug cartel” engaged in trafficking of large amount of cocaine from Latin America into Turkey via Georgia.

The most recent case of trafficking by the group, the ministry said, occurred in July 2009, when 90 kilos of cocaine, hidden among scrap metal on cargo vessel, was shipped to Georgia’s Black Sea port of Poti. Reported shipped cocaine was not seized. The ministry said that cocaine, hidden in a car’s bumper, was then smuggled to Turkey. Police said it seized EUR 1.7 million hidden in the ground of yard of a house in western Georgia, belonging to one of the arrested persons.

Police said a Georgian-born Greek citizen, now living in Spain, led the group, organizing shipments. The Interior Ministry said that his five accomplices in Georgia were arrested.

“This is the first case when such large amount of cocaine emerged on the Georgian market,” Shota Utiashvili, head of the interior ministry’s information and analytical department, said.

He said that operation was not coordinated with foreign law enforcement agencies, although added that the Georgian Interior Ministry planned to send investigators to Spain as part of ongoing investigation into the case.

http://www.civil.ge/eng/article.php?id=22388

Detention of International Drug Cartel Members

03.06.2010:

On June 2 five members of international drug cartel were arrested in Kutaisi and Tbilisi by the Ministry of Internal Affairs: Anastasia Zautashvili, Mevlud Svanidze, Roman Musemiani, Giorgi Chechelashvili and Tengiz Gurchiani.

Nugzar Bochorishvili, born 1968 in Georgia (currently, citizen of Greece, residing in Spain) was regularly providing the detainees with the junk iron from Panama, Peru and Columbia. Large amounts of cocaine were hidden in cargo in order to be later distributed in the international markets. The recipient of cargo was cousin of Anastasia Zautashvili Roman Musemiani.

In July 2009, Musemiani received another batch of junk iron in Poti in which 90 kg cocaine was hidden. Musemiani, cousin of Bochorishvili Giorgi Chechelashvili and their friend took the above-mentioned cargo to Kutaisi to the husband of Bochorishvili’sister Mevlud Svanidze. They hid cocaine in the Svanidze’s house.

For further transportation of drugs the group was waiting for Nugzar Bochorishvili’s call from Spain. After his call Chechelashvili and his friend, who had been promised 10 000 Euros for assistance, hid cocaine in the bumper of a car and carried it to Turkey. It should be noted that each time the cargo was received by the different persons in Turkey. For this time, the recipient was a citizen of Greece. As a password the group used the number of 5 dollar note, which Georgian citizens were telling to the recipient while meeting and the latter would show them the exact 5 dollar note. Afterwards the cargo was delivered. Investigation showed that this route was used several times.

They paid 10 000 US dollars to the Chechelashvili’s friend twice for escorting instead of promised 10 000 Euros. Besides, the group decided to get rid of the latter from business. The worried courier asked the local criminals to help him. The criminals called on Bochorishvili who was in Georgia at that time and demanded 250 000 US dollars from him. “Thief in Law” Shakro Kalashov contacted the criminal authority Tengiz Gurchiani in Georgia and asked him to help Bochorishvili. Gurchiani met the criminals wanting to intimidate Bochirishvili and demanded to cease pressing him. Later, Bochorishvili personally called Gurchiani and thanked him.

The group decided to liquidate courier. After a while Bochorishvili contacted Anastasia Zautashvili and provided her with the contact information of the killer whom Zautashvili was supposed to order courier’s murder.

The aforementioned criminal group was under operative surveillance of the Ministry of Internal Affairs. Their detention took place on June 2. While searching approximately 1 700 000 Euros buried in the ground were taken out from the Mevlud Svanidze’s yard and 50 000 Euros from the apartment of Anastasia Zautashvili. Currently Nugzar Bochorishvili is in Spain.

The Ministry of Internal Affairs carries out the investigation of the case and will later report new details.

-----------------------------------------------------------

http://www.police.ge/index.php?m=8&newsid=1006 (see video on the website)

Liberian cocaine bust said to be worth $100 million

Florida Statesman
Wednesday 2nd June, 2010


Drug enforcement officials in Liberia have seized four tonnes of Colombian cocaine from smugglers.

Police and US Embassy officials in Monrovia have put the street value of the drug at approximately $US100 million.

The US Embassy was involved in the raid on smugglers who were supposedly seeing the cocaine through to its intended final destination in the US.

It has been alleged that seven people who were caught with the drugs were attempting to exploit connections with supposedly corrupt government officials, who were in fact working in close cooperation with the US Drug Enforcement Agency.

Those caught with the narcotics have already been deported to the US to face trial.

The suspects will be charged with trying to establish cocaine smuggling routes from South America through the war-torn west African nation to the United States.
http://story.floridastatesman.com/index.php/ct/9/cid/c08dd24cec417021/id/642244/cs/1/

$120m worth of cocaine seized in Liberia
Posted 9 hours 57 minutes ago

Drug enforcement officials have seized four tonnes of Colombian cocaine with a street value of $US100 million ($120 million) in Monrovia, the capital of Liberia.

Seven people caught with the narcotics, which were destined for the United States, were arrested during the drugs bust last week and have been deported to the US to face trial, Liberia's defence minister Brownie Samukai said.

Brooks Robinson, from the US embassy in Monrovia, said the suspects were trying to establish cocaine smuggling routes from South America through the war-torn west African nation to the US.

They attempted to exploit connections with supposedly corrupt government officials who "were in fact working in an undercover capacity, in close cooperation with the US Drug Enforcement Agency," he said.

In recent years, international narcotics traffickers have transported huge quantities of cocaine, worth billions of dollars, through several West African countries which have emerged as a key transiting point.

They have often sought to bribe high-level public officials with large cash payments and narcotics in order to ensure the safe passage and distribution of their cocaine shipments.

http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2010/06/02/2915701.htm

Eight accused of trying to make Liberia a drug hub

Wed Jun 2, 2010

By Basil Katz

NEW YORK (Reuters) - A group of men accused of trying to set up a cocaine-smuggling route into Liberia from South America has been arrested in a U.S.-led operation and will face charges in New York, officials said on Tuesday.

The eight men were attempting to make the West African state a base of operations from which to move cocaine to Europe's highly lucrative market, U.S. Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) officials said.

Court documents unsealed on Tuesday in Manhattan federal court revealed the sting benefited from the undercover support of Fumbah Sirleaf, the son of Liberian President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf. As head of the state security agency, he pretended to accept bribes and recorded conversations with the would-be traffickers, the documents showed.

"Drug-trafficking organizations based in South America, predominantly in Columbia and Venezuela, have increasingly exploited countries in West Africa as trans-shipment hubs for importing by air and by sea hundreds of metric tonnes of cocaine ... worth literally billions of dollars," U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara told reporters.

Calling this a "very, very real, not aspirational, plan," Bharara said the defendants were planning to ship a total of six metric tonnes of cocaine into Liberia.

Europe's strong currency, growing demand and higher price per kilo (2.2 lb) have become strong incentives for drug groups in South America to increase sales there, DEA chief of operations Thomas Harrigan said.

More than 100 metric tonnes of cocaine per year is shipped to Africa from South America, he said.

But Liberia, unlike other West African states, alerted U.S. authorities when in 2007 the suspects began setting up the transport route, DEA officials said.

Some of the organizations trying to send cocaine to Liberia received a portion of the drugs from the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC), Bharara said.

Chigbo Peter Umeh, Konstantin Yaroshenko, Gilbrilla Kamara, Ali Sesay and Gennor Jalloh were arrested in Liberia's capital Monrovia and transferred to New York on Monday, prosecutors said. Nathaniel French and Kudufia Mawuko were arrested in Liberia on Tuesday, and another suspect, Jorge Ivan Salazar Castano, is in custody in Spain.

They are charged with conspiracy to distribute cocaine and face up to life in prison if convicted. Five of the men had pleaded not guilty as of late on Tuesday, authorities said.

http://af.reuters.com/article/topNews/idAFJOE65101520100602

US cocaine sting breaks up 100 million dollar Liberia plot
(AFP) – 10 hours ago

NEW YORK — The United States said Tuesday it broke up a drug ring that attempted to bribe the son of Liberia's president and export 100 million dollars of South American cocaine from ports in West Africa.

Eight people were arrested and face charges that carry a maximum sentence of life in prison for attempting to import cocaine into the United States, the federal prosecutor's office in New York said in a statement.

The charges involve three planned shipments of cocaine -- one that at 4,000 kilograms had a retail value of 100 million dollars and two more that totaled 2,000 kilograms, it said.

The drugs were to be shipped first from Venezuela to Liberia before being further distributed.

The defendants are accused of trying to bribe high-level Liberian officials, including the son of President Ellen Sirleaf, to protect the cocaine shipments and use Liberian ports to export the drugs to the United States and Europe.

"In seeking to ensure the safe passage of their cocaine shipments, the defendants agreed to make payments... in cash and also in the form of cocaine," the charge sheet said.

Sirleaf's son, who is the director of the Republic of Liberia National Security Agency (RLNSA), and his deputy were, unbeknownst to the defendants, working with the US Drug Enforcement Agency as undercover agents.

"During the last decade, drug trafficking organizations based in South America have increasingly used countries along or near the West African coast as trans-shipment hubs for importing massive quantities of cocaine to be later distributed in Europe or elsewhere within Africa," the indictment said.

Seven of the defendants, whose nationalities include Sierra Leone, Russia and Ghana, were arrested in Liberia. Another suspect, of Colombian origin, was arrested in Spain and remains in Spanish custody. A ninth Colombian suspect and alleged co-conspirator, Marcel Acevedo Sarmiento, remains a fugitive.

http://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5gDJIIJnhpcBbDNGsbdp2Cb68xZKw



Preet Bharara’s Prepared Remarks on Liberian Narcotics Arrests
By Main Justice staff | June 1, 2010 8:37 pm

United States v. Umeh, at al.
Operation Relentless
Prepared Remarks for U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara
June 1, 2010

Good afternoon. My name is Preet Bharara, and I am the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York.

Today we announce the unsealing of charges against members of alleged international narcotics conspiracies – conspiracies that touched four different continents; that measured its traffic not in kilograms, but in tons; and that counted its revenue not by the million, but by the billions of dollars.

This conspiracy, as the unsealed indictments describe, was ultimately put down in no small part because a proud West African nation – working closely with U.S. law enforcement – by its actions stated loudly and clearly: our country is not for sale to drug traffickers.

That nation is the Republic of Liberia; the product is cocaine; its source is South America; and the impact of this event should not be underestimated.

This past weekend, in the culmination of an unprecedented undercover operation involving DEA and the Liberian government, five defendants were arrested on U.S. charges in Monrovia, that nation’s capital, and they have been flown to face justice here in the Southern District.

And just a few hours ago, two additional defendants, French and Mawuko, were arrested at the airport in Liberia in connection with these same charges.

The Liberian Government’s commitment to the rule of law and to combating international drug traffickers is perhaps most poignantly reflected by the fact that one of the undercovers – who made secret recordings and pretended to accept bribes – is one of that government’s highest ranking officials: the Director of the Liberian National Security Agency. More remarkably still, he is also the son of the President of Liberia, Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, who herself was personally aware of, and cooperated with, the DEA operation.

I am honored to be standing here today with Nathaniel Barnes, the Ambassador from the Republic of Liberia to the United States. Without the strong, unwavering support of the Liberian Government, this investigation would not have been possible.

I am also joined today by our partner in this and so many other landmark investigations: the Drug Enforcement Administration, represented by Thomas Harrigan, Assistant Administrator and Chief of Operations. Less than a year ago, Tom testified before the United States Congress about the troubling and rising tide of trafficking in West Africa. Also, Jim Soiles, the Assistant Special Agent-in-Charge of DEA Special Operations Division.

I also want to express my appreciation to Assistant United States Attorneys Michael Rosensaft, Jenna Dabbs, and Christopher LaVigne, who are in charge of this prosecution and Anjan Sahni, Co-Chief of the Terrorism and International Narcotics Unit.

Now let me take a moment to review the charges. The two indictments unsealed today describe a recent and troubling phenomenon: drug trafficking organizations based in South America (predominately Colombia and Venezuela) have increasingly exploited countries in West Africa as trans-shipment hubs for importing, by air and by sea, hundreds of metric tons of cocaine, worth billions of dollars. These syndicates have preyed like mercenaries upon the nations of West Africa – countries like Guinea Bissau, Guinea Conakry, Sierra Leone, Togo, Mali, Ghana, Nigeria, and, until recently, Liberia.

In this case, the defendants were allegedly looking to establish a new base of operations within Liberia on behalf of South American drug trafficking organizations, including organizations which were receiving cocaine from the FARC.

The FARC, of course, is an international terrorist group dedicated to the violent overthrow of the democratically elected government of Colombia. It is also the world’s largest supplier of cocaine. To that end, the defendants allegedly attempted to bribe high-level government officials in Liberia – in the form of large sums of cash and cocaine – portions of which cocaine the defendants understood would be imported from West Africa into New York.

What the defendants didn’t know, however, was that the Liberian national security officials they were allegedly trying to bribe were actually working undercover as part of a long-term, coordinated investigation with the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration. And as a result, the defendants’ brazen attempts to corrupt and exploit Liberia in service of their drug business were caught on tape – audio and video.

And these drug plans were not merely aspirational. Certain of the defendants were allegedly tied to Colombian traffickers who had already tried to send 1200 kilograms (well over a ton) of cocaine to West Africa – a shipment which was seized off the coast of Liberia in 2008 – and were actively plotting to help send six tons more to Liberia. As alleged, they were also seeking to enlist the help of Liberian officials to recover the seized ship and its cargo of cocaine.

Over the last two years, this Office, in partnership with the DEA, has recognized the importance to this country of what goes on in West Africa.
•
Last year, we announced the first ever transfer of two defendants from Sierra Leone, whom we had charged with narcotics offenses.
•
Most recently, this past December, we announced the arrest and transfer from Ghana of three defendants from Mali who, as alleged, represented themselves to be associates of Al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb on narco-terrorism charges.

The reasons for this Office’s commitment to these cases, and the one announced today, are straightforward. The establishment of a narcotics safe haven in West Africa has the potential to unsettle a region, enable terrorism, and facilitate the mass distribution of poison to Europe and America.

The destabilization of West Africa – whether through drug trafficking, narco-terrorism, or corruption – imperils not just the region, but international security.
West Africa is at something of a crossroads. The nations of that region can become beachheads for the narcotics trade, or they can stand as bulwarks against it.

The Republic of Liberia has made a courageous commitment to the latter course. Indeed, President Sirleaf has put her own flesh and blood in the fight and in the line of fire. What greater resolve could a leader demonstrate? We owe her, her country, and her region everything we can muster to assist in that fight. Finally, we owe it to the American people because it is America that suffers and sees its people poisoned by the scourge of the international drug trade.

http://www.mainjustice.com/2010/06/01/preet-bhararas-prepared-remarks-on-liberian-narcotics-arrests/

Manhattan U.S. Attorney Announces Unsealing of Charges Arising From Historic Joint Undercover Operation in the Republic of Liberia
DEA's "Operation Relentless" Culminates in Arrest of Eight Defendants for Conspiring to Use Liberia as Staging Area for Distribution of More Than $100 Million Worth of Cocaine

Son of President of Liberia Acts as Undercover in Investigation

NEW YORK, June 1 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Five defendants – Chigbo Peter Umeh, a/k/a "Emeka Okonkwo," a/k/a "Chigbogu Umehwunne," a/k/a "Mike," a/k/a "Chibue," a/k/a "El Negro," Konstantin Yaroshenko, Gilbrilla Kamara, a/k/a/ "Gibril Kamara," a/k/a "Anthony Smith," a/k/a "GK," a/k/a "Gibry," a/k/a "Gee Wee," a/k/a "River Stallon," Ali Sesay, a/k/a "Aliue Sesay," a/k/a "Alie Sesay," and Gennor Jalloh, a/k/a "Chernoh Nuhu Jalloh" – arrived in the Southern District of New York from Liberia on May 30, 2010, to face charges of conspiring to import cocaine into the United States. The defendants, who were arrested in coordination with Liberian authorities on May 28 and 29, 2010, were transferred by the Government of Liberia to the custody of the United States to face narcotics trafficking charges in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York. This marks the first defendant transfer by the Government of Liberia to the United States in connection with narcotics-related charges in over 30 years, announced Preet Bharara, the U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York, and Michele M. Leonhart, the Acting Administrator of the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA).

Two additional defendants -- Nathaniel French, a/k/a "The Frenchman," a/k/a "The Expert," and Kudufia Mawuko, a/k/a "Marco" – were arrested by Liberian authorities this morning. They are expected to be transferred to United States custody shortly. One additional defendant -- Jorge Ivan Salazar Castano, a/k/a "El Chavel" – was previously arrested in Spain, and remains in Spanish custody.

The defendants have been charged in two Indictments that were unsealed today. The first indictment -- S8 09 Cr. 524 – charges five defendants: Umeh, Yaroshenko, French, Mawuko and Jorge Ivan Salazar Castano, a/k/a "El Chavel." The second indictment, which bears docket number 10 Cr. 457, charges three defendants: Kamara, Sesay and Jalloh. Also unsealed today was a complaint -- 10 Mag. 1166 -- which charges one defendant, Marcel Acevedo Sarmiento, a/k/a "Jota," a/k/a "JJ," a/k/a "Juan Restrepo," who is alleged to have been a co-conspirator of the conspiracy charged in Indictment S8 09 Cr. 524. Acevedo Sarmiento remains at large.

According to the indictments and complaint unsealed today:

During the last decade, drug trafficking organizations based in South America have increasingly used countries along or near the West African coast as trans-shipment hubs for importing massive quantities of cocaine to be later distributed in Europe or elsewhere within Africa. Through a combination of privately owned aircraft and maritime vessels, these organizations, predominantly based in Colombia and Venezuela, have transported hundreds of tons of cocaine, worth billions of dollars, to places such as Guinea Bissau, Guinea Conakry, Sierra Leone, Togo, Mali, Ghana, Nigeria and Liberia. In so doing, representatives of these drug trafficking organizations have often sought to bribe high-level public officials with large cash payments and narcotics in order to ensure the safe passage, storage and distribution of their cocaine shipments.

Since in or about 2007, the defendants have attempted to bribe high-level officials in the Liberian Government in order to protect shipments of vast quantities of cocaine, and to use Liberia as a trans-shipment point for further distribution of the cocaine in Africa and Europe. In particular, certain of the defendants met with two individuals they knew to be Liberian government officials – the Director and Deputy Director of the Republic of Liberia National Security Agency (RLNSA), both of whom (unbeknownst to the defendants) in fact were working jointly with the DEA in an undercover capacity ("UC-1" and "UC-2", respectively).

The Director of the RLNSA is also the son of the current President of Liberia. In a number of the meetings involving these Liberian officials, the defendants also met with a confidential source working with DEA (the "CS"), who purported to be a business partner and confidante of the Director of the RLNSA.

In seeking to ensure the safe passage of their cocaine shipments, the defendants agreed to make payments to the Director and the Deputy Director of the RLNSA in cash and also in the form of cocaine. The CS advised the defendants that a portion of the cocaine paid to the CS would be transported from Liberia to Ghana, from where it would be imported into New York.

The S8 09 Cr. 524 Indictment

According to the S8 09 Cr. 524 Indictment, Umeh, 42, who is from Nigeria, was a broker who assisted various international narcotics suppliers in shipping numerous tons of cocaine from South America to West Africa, from where the cocaine was transported to Europe or elsewhere within Africa. Salazar Castano, 44, who is from Colombia, was a cocaine supplier based in Colombia and Spain, who, together with his co-conspirators, sent large commercial aircraft containing cocaine from South America to West Africa, as well as smaller, private airplanes that departed from clandestine airstrips in Venezuela. Yaroshenko, 41, who is from Russia, was an aircraft pilot and aviation transport expert who transported thousand-kilogram quantities of cocaine throughout South America, Africa and Europe. French, 51, who is from Ghana, assisted drug suppliers by providing logistical support and coordination for maritime shipments of cocaine across the Atlantic Ocean. Mawuko, 57, who is also from Ghana, assisted the drug suppliers through his extensive knowledge of maritime navigation, including the development of sea routes that could evade law enforcement radar.

The defendants participated in a series of face-to-face meetings, phone conversations, and telephone calls with the cooperating Liberian officials and the CS in connection with at least three different shipments of cocaine that they were trying to transport through Liberia: (1) a shipment of approximately 4,000 kilograms, which was to be flown from Venezuela to Monrovia, Liberia, and the retail value of which was over $100 million; (2) a shipment of approximately 1,500 kilograms, which was to be flown from Venezuela to Monrovia, Liberia, on an aircraft originating in Panama; and (3) a shipment of approximately 500 kilograms of cocaine, which was to be transported by a ship from Venezuela to a location off the coast of Liberia. Through these meetings, the defendants all understood that once the cocaine was transported to Liberia, a portion of the shipment (representing the payment to the CS) would be transported into Ghana, from where it would be placed on a commercial flight destined for the United States.

During a meeting in Monrovia, Umeh stated that the 4,000 kilograms of cocaine which the conspiracy intended to import into Liberia had been supplied and protected by the Fuerzas Armadas Revolucionarias de Colombia (the "FARC"). The FARC is an international terrorist group dedicated to the violent overthrow of the democratically elected Government of Colombia.

On May 28 and 29, 2010, defendants Umeh and Yaroshenko were arrested in Liberia. On May 30, 2010, they were transferred to United States custody and brought to the Southern District of New York, where they will make their first court appearance later today. Defendants French and Mawuko were arrested in Liberia this morning, June 1, 2010, and are expected to be transferred to United States custody shortly. Defendant Salazar Castano is presently incarcerated in Spain.

The S8 09 Cr. 524 indictment has been assigned to U.S. District Judge Jed S. Rakoff for the Southern District of New York.

The 10 Cr. 457 Indictment

As set forth in indictment 10 Cr. 457, since at least in or about 2007, Kamara, 40, who is from Sierra Leone, has actively sought to recruit South American drug trafficking organizations to establish operations in various West African countries, including in Liberia, Guinea Conakry, Guinea Bissau, Sierra Leone and Nigeria. Kamara has made efforts to corrupt and influence Government officials within the West African region in order to establish safe havens for the receipt, storage, and trans-shipment of thousands of kilograms of cocaine. Jalloh, 33, and Sesay, both of whom are also from Sierra Leone, have assisted Kamara with his drug distribution enterprise and with his efforts to corrupt public officials for the benefit of South American drug trafficking organizations.

Kamara, Jalloh and Sesay exchanged a series of emails and telephone calls and held numerous meetings with the CS, the cooperating Liberian officials, and a third Liberian government official who was also working jointly with the DEA in an undercover capacity ("UC-3"), in order to negotiate prices and make specific arrangements for the secure transportation of cocaine from South America through Liberia, including, but not limited to, a 4,000 kilogram shipment of cocaine from Colombia. The CS, who was introduced as UC-1's "partner" and confidante, was present for many of these meetings. In the course of these meetings, the defendants understood that the CS, who was to be paid by the defendants in the form of cocaine, was going to send a portion of his share of the cocaine to Ghana, from where it would be imported into New York aboard commercial flights.

In coordination with Liberian authorities, Kamara, Jalloh and Sesay were arrested on May 28, 2010. On May 30, 2010, they were transferred to United States custody and brought to the Southern District of New York, where they will make their first court appearance later today.

The 10 Cr. 457 indictment has been assigned to U.S. District Judge William H. Pauley for the Southern District of New York.

The 10 Mag. 1166 Complaint

As set forth in complaint 10 Mag. 1166, Acevedo Sarmiento is a cocaine supplier based in Colombia and Venezuela, capable of transporting thousand-kilogram quantities of cocaine from South America to various locations in West Africa, for distribution within Africa and for further distribution to Europe and other markets. Acevedo Sarmiento worked in the international drug business with members of the conspiracy charged in the S8 09 Cr. 524 indictment, including in connection with the 4,000 kilogram shipment of cocaine referenced therein.

In a series of recorded telephone conversations with the CS, Acevedo Sarmiento, who claimed to have been involved in the cocaine trafficking business for over 20 years, coordinated efforts to arrange what was ultimately supposed to be a shipment of between 2,000 and 2,500 kilograms of cocaine on a plane from Venezuela to Liberia. Acevedo Sarmiento confirmed to the CS that the cocaine shipment had been protected by the FARC.

On May 29, 2010, Acevedo Sarmiento indicated that Venezuelan authorities had seized his plane, which he claimed was worth $35 million, as well as the cocaine that it contained, and had directed him to leave the country. After apprising the CS of the seizure, Acevedo Sarmiento invited the CS to invest 500 kilograms in a new shipment out of Bolivia, which Acevedo Sarmiento understood the CS intended to import into New York. Acevedo Sarmiento instructed the CS to wire transfer a $100,000 payment to him, and provided the CS with the relevant bank account information for the transfer.

The United States is coordinating with Colombian authorities to locate and apprehend Acevedo Sarmiento.

All of the defendants are charged with one count of conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute cocaine, knowing or intending that the cocaine would be imported into the United States. This offense carries a minimum sentence of ten years in prison and a maximum term of life imprisonment.

The arrests and transfers of the defendants were the result of the close cooperative efforts of the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Southern District of New York, the Special Operations Division of the DEA, the DEA Lagos Country Office, the DEA Warsaw Country Office, the DEA Bogota Country Office, the DEA Rome Country Office, the U.S. Department of Justice Office of International Affairs, the U.S. State Department, the U.S. Embassy in Liberia, the Republic of Liberia and its National Security Agency, and the Security Services of Ukraine.

U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara stated: "During the last decade, South American narcotics traffickers have burrowed a growing foothold in West Africa, sending hundreds of tons of cocaine worth billions of dollars into the region. They have done so by seeking to influence and corrupt public officials with lucrative promises of payoffs. As today's charges vividly show, the Government of Liberia has taken an aggressive and emphatic stand in shutting its doors to drug traffickers. Liberia's commitment to the rule of the law and the international fight against the drug trade merits strong commendation. For the President of Liberia, this effort has been a personal one. Her own son, the Director of Liberia's National Security Agency, courageously served as an undercover to make this investigation and prosecution possible. The transfer of these defendants to American custody reflects the strong partnership between the United States and Liberia in combating the international drug trade, which poses a serious threat to both countries."

DEA Acting Administrator Michele M. Leonhart stated: "Unprecedented cooperation from the highest levels of government in Liberia helped expose drug smuggling and corruption that led to indictments of African, Colombian, and Russian traffickers. Operation Relentless successfully battered the pipeline of cocaine flowing from South America, through Africa, and into Europe. In this case, ton quantities of FARC cocaine were seized and the operations of several major traffickers were disrupted."

The Honorable Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, President of the Republic of Liberia, stated: "As today's charges show, the Republic of Liberia is officially closed for business to the narcotics trade. We are strongly committed to combating international drug organizations that seek to exploit our country for their own profit. We are proud of our strong partnership with the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration and the U.S. Department of Justice, and we look forward to strengthening and deepening this relationship in the years to come."

This prosecution is being handled by the Office's Terrorism and International Narcotics Unit. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Jenna M. Dabbs, Christopher LaVigne and Michael M. Rosensaft are in charge of the prosecution.

The charges contained in the indictments and complaint are merely accusations and the defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.


SOURCE U.S. Department of Justice

http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/manhattan-us-attorney-announces-unsealing-of-charges-arising-from-historic-joint-undercover-operation-in-the-republic-of-liberia-95342159.html

6.5kg drugs seized from plane

Published: May 30, 2010
KARACHI - Six 5kg of heroin, concealed in the ceiling of the toilet of a plane, was recovered from Jinnah International Airport on Saturday.
The raid was conducted at the flight PK-303 of Pakistan International Airline (PIA) on a tip off some secret sources.
As per detail, three major agencies including Anti-Narcotic Force, (ANF) Pakistan Customs Preventive and Customs Intelligence conducted the raid and recovered 6.5 kilograms of heroin after a through search of the plane.
The joint director ANF Col. Shahrukh, Deputy Collector of Customs Habib Ahmed and Superintendent of Customs Intelligence Willayat were heading the raid.
The said flight of PIA was arrived from Lahore in which narcotic was cleverly been concealed in ceiling of rare toilet of the aircraft.
The worth of the recovered heroin in international market is Rs 65 million while officials said that it was one of the case of domestic heroin smuggling made through the local flight. FIR has been lodged under the Narcotic Act, while further investigation is under process.
http://www.nation.com.pk/pakistan-news-newspaper-daily-english-online/Regional/Karachi/30-May-2010/65kg-drugs-seized-from-plane

Agents in the Post Office seize liquid cocaine or heroin headed to Canada

4 June 2010
SANTO DOMINGO. – Antinarcotics (DNCD) agents assigned to the Post Office and technicians uncovered a new drug trafficking modality when they seized presumably cocaine or heroin in liquid form, headed to Canada inside dozens of markers and five inch tubes.
DNCD spokesman Ramon Alcides Rodriguez said the alleged drug was in a box which was going to be shipped by a person resident of the sector Ensanche Ozama, and received the next day in Toronto.

The liquid, which weighed around 353 grams, was sent to the forensics lab for analysis.

http://www.dominicantoday.com/dr/local/2010/6/4/35915/Agents-in-the-Post-Office-seize-liquid-cocaine-or-heroin-headed-to-Canada

Sh85.6m cocaine seized at airport

06-06-2010
Cocaine worth millions of shillings has been seized at the Jomo Kenyatta International Airport.

The illicit drug was disguised as office stationery for United Nations staff in Uganda

Police are holding a Ugandan woman who landed at the airport at 7.30pm on Saturday carrying the drugs with a street value of Sh85.6 million.

The 21.4 kilogrammes of the narcotic drug were wrapped in 10 packets and packed in two plastic boxes bearing UN logos.

The boxes were labelled “diplomatic bags,” enabling the woman to easily pass through security checks at other international airports.

She had flown from Lima in Peru, to Brazil, then South Africa and was detained at JKIA after alighting from a South Africa Airlines plane.

Detectives told the Nation that the woman had planned to leave Nairobi by road and enter Uganda via the Busia border point.

She is expected to be charged in court on Monday.

The woman claimed that she works for Uganda’s Foreign Affairs Ministry and is attached to the United Nations Development Programme offices in Kampala.

She had two badges, purportedly issued by the Ugandan government and the UN agency, identifying her as a logistics officer, but police have yet to establish their authenticity.

Anti-narcotics police officers at the airport became suspicious because each of the boxes was secured with four padlocks and the woman claimed that the keys were with her employer at the main office in Kampala.

The head of criminal investigations at the airport, Mr Joseph Ngisa, said: “Our officers were carrying out normal screening of passengers. She could not even tell where the UNDP headquarters are and we decided to break the padlocks,” he said.

The boxes were packed with files and other office materials and the drugs concealed beneath them.

Saturday’s seizure comes 11 days after 60 kilogrammes of cannabis resin, a hard drug sold as hashish, was intercepted at the airport.

The drug was stashed in three cartons transported from South Africa in a cargo plane.

Two men were arrested at the city centre and charged in court in connection with the drugs.

http://www.nation.co.ke/News/-/1056/933064/-/w8rwmo/-/

More than 100 kg cocaine found in container with bananas, S.Petersburg

More than 100 kg cocaine found in container with bananas, S.Petersburg
Friday, May 28, 2010

Russia S.Petersburg - Customs found 117.82 kg cocaine in one of the containers on board of boxship MSC Nora on May 26, packages with cocaine were in three travel bags, hidden between boxes with bananas. Msc Nora arrived to S.Petersburg from Antwerpen, with more than 100 containers of fruits, originated from Equador. Customs now inspecting all other containers, investigation under way. MSC Nora IMO 8511299 Flag Panama build 1986 DWT 43567.

http://www.odin.tc/eng/articles/351-More-than-100-kg-cocaine-found-in-container-with-bananas-SPetersburg.asp

Video with official press interview on two websites:

http://www.vesti.ru/doc.html?id=363735&cid=17

http://www.tv100.ru/news/Kokainovyj-raj-arestovali-25709/

Large Shipment of Ketamine Seized

(TORONTO, Ontario – Thursday May 27th, 2010) - The RCMP Greater Toronto Drug Section in a joint investigation with Canada Border Services Agency have charged two Toronto area men for their role in smuggling Ketamine into Canada through the Port of Vancouver.

On May 3rd, 2010 officers with the Canada Border Services Agency in Vancouver intercepted an incoming sea container destined for the Toronto area with 352 kilograms of Ketamine concealed among its cargo. The investigation was turned over to the RCMP's Greater Vancouver Drug Section. The shipment was allowed to continue to Toronto.

On May 26, 2010, as a result of the joint investigation, James Dong KIM (39 yrs) and Chung Wei LEE (32 yrs) both of Thornhill were arrested after they unloaded the container with the Ketamine. Both are facing charges of Importing Ketamine, Possession of Ketamine for the Purpose of Trafficking and Conspiracy to Import.

Ketamine is manufactured legally as a veterinary drug. Its street name is “Special K” or “K” and is used as an illicit drug that can produce hallucinations, euphoria, “out of body” experiences. It has also been used in the past by offenders as a “date rape’ drug. This amount of Ketamine is capable of producing an estimated one million dosages and if the shipment was not intercepted, it could have had a significant impact on the GTA communities.

“The RCMP Drug Program continues to work with our partners to identify, investigate, disrupt and dismantle international drug trafficking organizations that are having the most significant impact on our communities” stated Supt. Rick Penney, the officer in charge of the RCMP Greater Toronto Area Drug Enforcement Unit.

Both accused are scheduled to appear for a bail hearing at Old City Hall on May 27, 2010.

-30-

Royal Navy launches anti-sub war against drug cartels

The Royal Navy is preparing to conduct anti-submarine warfare against drug cartels smuggling cocaine under the sea.
By Thomas Harding, Defence Correspondent
Published: 8:00AM BST 29 May 2010

HMS Manchester, a Type 42 destroyer equipped with powerful sonar and an anti-submarine helicopter, has left this week for the Caribbean to carry out counter narcotics patrol as well as hurricane relief.

Drug runners have resorted to using small submarines, roughly the size of a large minibus, as a heavier military presence has led to increased drug seizures.

The boats are thought to have been mostly former tourist underwater viewing submarines that have been adapted for smuggling able to carry up to five tonnes of cocaine worth £60 million on the streets of Britain.

Rear Admiral Mark Anderson, commander of Fleet operations, said: “There’s clear evidence, not just intelligence, that they are trying to use submarines and have successfully used certain submersibles and we suspect submarines to transport drugs.”

He added: “This is a hugely profitable business so they can buy some hugely expensive assets. What they are buying is extraordinary.”

The submarines are thought to be currently used along the Pacific coast smuggling into mainland United States and could soon transfer to the Caribbean.

Manchester is equipped with a Lynx helicopter that can carry depth charges and anti-submarine Stingray torpedo. But the aircraft is more likely to be used to track a submarine waiting for it to surface when the crew require air or need to recharge its batteries.

The warship will also be accompanied by the Royal Fleet Auxiliary ship Wave Ruler that can carry the advanced Merlin anti-submarine warfare helicopter.

As well as “go fast” boats and light aircraft the traffickers have introduced radar-evading boats that have a very low water profile with only the wheel house sticking above the water.

“We are starting to see traffickers using increasingly more exotic mean to get drugs through,” the officer said at an MoD briefing yesterday.

With the South American drug barons’ income equivalent to Britain’s defence budget, about £36 billion, the cost of smuggling equipment “is not an issue”.

One any given day in the Caribbean it is estimated that there are up to 30 tonnes of cocaine is being transported.

More than 1,400 tonnes of the drug is smuggled across the Atlantic every year but despite a sixfold increase in interceptions only 3 per cent (43 tonnes) was seized last year.

It is estimated that 20 tonnes of cocaine is enough to “kill every school child and pensioner in the UK”

But with counter-narcotics currently the third priority after hurricane relief and military training Admiral Anderson admitted it could be “in the national interest to run a ruler over it again.”

Cuts to the Navy have forced it to have a presence in the Caribbean for only six months of the year.

“We need some presence to push the problem ever harder into Caribbean traffickers,” the officer said.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/crime/7779176/Royal-Navy-launches-anti-sub-war-against-drug-cartels.html

Five refused bail over $11.5m cocaine haul

ALICIA WOOD AND DANIELLE TEUTSCH
May 30, 2010
"Nut samples"... the cocaine seized in England was bound for Australia. Photo: James Brickwood
FIVE people accused of importing 33 kilograms of cocaine into Australia had their matters heard at Parramatta Court yesterday.

The alleged international drug syndicate involved four US citizens and a Sydney man, who allegedly attempted to smuggle the drugs in two air cargo consignments from Mexico, via Britain.

At a press conference Australian Federal Police Detective Superintendent Mick Kelsey said the operation, initiated by British authorities, had prevented an estimated $11.5 million worth of cocaine being distributed in Australia.

The two shipments of cocaine arrived in London from Mexico a fortnight ago, in one-kilogram tins labelled ''powdered nut samples''. British authorities seized the drug and alerted Australian police. The contents were substituted with fake cocaine and the tins were sent on to Sydney.

It was alleged that a 41-year-old Marrickville man picked up the boxed tins at a storage facility in Marrickville last Tuesday.

Two days later, a 47-year-old American arrived in Sydney from Los Angeles. The two men then allegedly transferred some of the boxes to a hotel in the Sydney CBD, where they were unpacked.

On Friday AFP officers arrested the men, along with three other US citizens, including a 25-year-old woman, who it is alleged were part of the syndicate. The five were charged with attempting to import cocaine.

Police also executed search warrants on two Sydney hotels and on a business and residence in Marrickville on Friday.

''The seizure has saved the Australian community $9.5 million in associated health and social costs, and countless lives would have been affected had it reached the streets,'' Superintendent Kelsey said.

Mexico had become a more frequent transit point for cocaine into Australia, he said.

One of the people involved in the alleged international conspiracy, James Allotey, 41, of Marrickville, told magistrate George Zdenkowski that his ''arrest was simply illegitimate''.

Mr Allotey stormed out of the holding cell when the magistrate refused his bail application. He was appearing via a video link.

According to the fact sheet tendered to the court, Mr Allotey allegedly received a shipment of cocaine on May 25.

Police also alleged that between March and April he received amounts of $916, $787 and $1063 from a Mexican address.

His co-accused - Christian Pelaez, 25, Melissa Peron, 25, Mario Colokuris, 47, Mauricio Kreimerman, 30 - are all US citizens and did not apply for bail.

All five are due to appear in Central Local Court tomorrow.

http://www.smh.com.au/nsw/five-refused-bail-over-115m-cocaine-haul-20100529-wmfy.html

Bulgarian Customs Capture 40 kg of Heroin

2010-05-30 10:49:09


Customs officer have found 41.4 kg of heroin in a car crossing from Turkey into Bulgaria.

The heroin, which is worth over BGN 5.2 M at market prices according to the police, was captured at the Kapitan Andreevo border crossing point, the press service of the Bulgarian Customs Agency said.

The 42 packets containing the drug were found hidden on the inside of the car seats.

Both people traveling in the car – a 48- and a 50-year-old Turkish citizen – have been arrested. They told the customs officers they were headed for Romania.

http://www.novinite.com/newsletter/print.php?id=116677

Five held over airport drug seizure

Five people were arrested for smuggling 33kgs of cocaine

Five people were arrested in Australia after officers at Heathrow Airport found 33kgs of cocaine hidden in containers of nut powder, the UK Border Agency has said.

The drugs, thought to have a UK street value of about £1.3 million, were concealed in freight containers en route from central America to Sydney.

Four US citizens and one Australian national were arrested in Sydney after an international operation involving officers from the UKBA's criminal and financial investigation unit and agents from the Australian Federal Police.

UKBA's head of border force Brodie Clark said: "This was a superb detection by the Heathrow team, involving a very large quantity of class A drugs.

"We believe that UK Border Agency investigators have helped disrupt a significant international organised criminal network.

"Drug smuggling is an international issue, and we're committed to working closely with law enforcement colleagues in Australia and around the world to tackle organised crime like this."

http://news.uk.msn.com/world/articles.aspx?cp-documentid=153574910

Customs uncovers opium in express air cargo

Hong Kong Customs yesterday (May 24) uncovered a drug trafficking case at the express cargo terminal of Hong Kong International Airport and seized 12 items of clothing weighing five kilogrammes. The clothes were soaked with opium with an estimated value of $100,000. The opium was being smuggled from Laos to the USA via Hong Kong.

Yesterday, Customs officers of the Airport Command inspected a parcel declared as "cotton woven dresses", being transshipped from Laos to the USA. The officers found the smell of the clothes inside the carton unusual and conducted further examinations. The result of subsequent tests confirmed that the clothes were all soaked with opium. The case is still under investigation.

In August 2009, Hong Kong Customs arrested an incoming passenger at the airport for bringing in clothing soaked with cocaine solvent.

This case is the first time Hong Kong Customs has detected the use of a similar method for trafficking opium by means of express air cargo. Since September 2009, Hong Kong Customs has detected six cases of trafficking opium to the USA at the express cargo terminals of the airport.

Hong Kong Customs has strengthened enforcement action at all control points in support of the Government's strategy to combat drugs. Customs officers are on high alert at all times to foil attempts by drug traffickers to take advantage of the heavy flow of passengers and cargo at the control points. Customs will continue to make use of advanced technology, intelligence analysis, risk assessment and international co-operation to crack down on drug trafficking activities.

Under the Dangerous Drugs Ordinance, drug trafficking is a serious offence, which carries a maximum penalty of life imprisonment and a fine of $5 million.


Ends/Tuesday, May 25, 2010
Issued at HKT 19:14
http://www.info.gov.hk/gia/general/201005/25/P201005250208.htm

Largest single drug seizure at Harwich this year

25 May 2010

A haul of cannabis resin with an estimated street value of £2.5 million has been seized at the Port of Harwich by the UK Border Agency.

The 800kg of cannabis - the biggest seizure of the drug at the port this year - had been shipped to the UK from Holland, hidden in an unaccompanied trailer carrying concrete slabs.

A search of the trailer in the early hours of Thursday 13 May revealed that a proportion of the slabs had been hollowed out to conceal the drugs.

Details of the detection can be released today after investigations from the Border Force criminal and financial investigations service led to two arrests in connection with this importation. This follows searches in Earls Colne and Burton on Trent.

Bill Form, assistant director for the UK Border Agency at Harwich, said:

'This is the biggest single seizure of cannabis at Harwich this year.

'Drug smugglers are criminals who are only out to make a profit and care nothing for the trail of devastation their illegal trade leaves in its wake. We will continue to fight the threat that drug smuggling poses to the UK.'

Joseph Buckley, 32-years-old, from John Mace Road, Colchester, has been charged with importing a class B drug. He appeared before Chelmsford magistrates on 15 May and has been remanded in custody.

A second man from the Handsworth area of Birmingham remains on bail.

http://www.ukba.homeoffice.gov.uk/sitecontent/newsarticles/2010/may/19largest-drug-seizure

San Diego CBP Officers Find 1,300 Pounds of Marijuana in Cement Fixtures, Furniture

(Tuesday, May 25, 2010)

San Diego - U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers at the Otay Mesa cargo facility seized more than half a ton of marijuana Monday, after breaking apart cement fixtures to access the packages hidden inside.

Just before 5 p.m. on May 24, a driver with a truck carrying a shipment of cement tabletops, benches, and other furniture and cement decorative blocks, pillars, and tiles applied for entry into the U.S. at the Otay Mesa cargo facility.

After officers X-rayed the truck and cargo, they sent the conveyance to the dock for a more intensive examination.

A CBP officer roving the dock with her narcotic detection dog received an alert from the canine, reacting to the cement items in the truck.

Officers unloaded the shipment and drilled into one of the cement articles, discovering marijuana hidden inside.

After breaking apart various cement items from the shipment, officers found 140 packages of marijuana, weighing 1,335 pounds, with an estimated value of $667,500.

CBP officers turned over custody of the driver, a 36-year-old male Mexican citizen, to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents. The driver is currently being held at the Metropolitan Correctional Center.

http://www.cbp.gov/xp/cgov/newsroom/news_releases/local/05252010_5.

Two jailed over £20m scrap metal cocaine smuggle plot

Thursday, 27 May 2010

Two men have been jailed over a plot to smuggle more than £20m worth of cocaine into the UK inside scrap metal.

Neil Tindling, 35, of Bishop's Stortford, Hertfordshire, admitted conspiracy to import cocaine and possession with intent to supply.

Tindling was jailed for 22 years at Chelmsford Crown Court.

Christopher Foile, 42, of Stebbing, Essex, who admitted possession of cocaine with intent to supply, was jailed for eight years.

'Prime mover'
The court heard Tindling tried to hide nearly 225kg of cocaine in a shipment of scrap metal from Guyana.

Prosecutor Martyn Bowyer said Tindling described himself as a "self-employed painter and decorator" who earned about £60,000 a year.

But Tindling was the "prime mover" in the plot and there was evidence he had made "very large" cash deposits and owned property in Jamaica and France, Mr Bowyer told the court.

Dutch police found the drugs concealed in rusty steel blocks when the ship docked in Rotterdam in October 2008 after a tip-off, said Mr Bowyer.

Officers from the Serious Organised Crime Agency (SOCA) filled the blocks with sand, re-sealed them, then sent the shipment on to the UK.

SOCA then made arrests as Tindling and two associates tried to cut open the blocks in an isolated barn near Chelmsford, Essex, weeks later.

A third man - Brandon Coates, 34, of Morley, Leeds, who admits conspiracy to import cocaine - will be sentenced on Friday.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/england/essex/10175829.stm

ANF seizes 243kg heroin, arrests two men

Thursday, May 27, 2010

KARACHI: Anti-Narcotics Force (ANF) on Wednesday claimed to have confiscated heroin worth billions of rupees from the Karachi seaport during a raid, while two drug dealers were also apprehended. ANF officials said they seized 243 kilogrammes of heroin concealed in wooden furniture and water dispensers from two containers destined for West Africa. The officials also took Khan Saeed and Muhammad Riaz into custody and registered a case under Section 9 (C) of Control of Narcotic Substances Act of 1997. staff report

http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/default.asp?page=2010/05/27/story_27-5-2010_pg12_12

Mexican port captain jailed for alleged drug ties

By ALEXANDRA OLSON , 05.27.10, 09:40 PM EDT


MEXICO CITY -- Mexican marines have arrested the captain of a major Pacific coast port that has become a hot spot for the smuggling of methamphetamine precursor chemicals, accusing him of drug trafficking ties.

Manzanillo port Captain Jorge Arturo Castaneda was the second top official to be arrested for alleged drug links this week. On Tuesday, federal police arrested Cancun Mayor Gregorio Sanchez for allegedly protecting two violent drug cartels.

In April, nearly 4 tons (3.6 metric tons) of ephedrine were seized in Manzanillo. Last week, authorities seized 88 tons (80 metric tons) of ethyl phenyl acetate, also known as phenylacetic acid in five shipping containers sent from China to Manzanillo. It was the second seizure of its type this month in the port.

Drug traffickers have turned to phenylacetic acid for making methamphetamine since Mexico effectively banned imports of another precursor, pseudoephedrine.

Corruption is a major impediment in Mexico's efforts to combat drug trafficking. Since President Felipe Calderon took office in December 2006, hundreds of officials have been fired or arrested for allegedly protecting drug gangs, from municipal police officers to top federal officials.

There have also been fears that drug cartels may try to influence the country's July 4 state and local elections, concern thta was heightened with the arrest of Cancun's mayor, who had taken a leave of absence to run for governor in the Caribbean coast state of Quintana Roo.

On Thursday, Ricardo Najera, the spokesman for the federal Attorney General's Office, said Sanchez had denied the drug trafficking, organized crime and money laundering charges against him at his arraignment Wednesday night. The judge in the case will decide by Saturday whether the evidence warrants ordering Sanchez to stand trial.

Sanchez's party claims the charges are a politically motivated attempt to knock him out of the race, an accusation the government has denied.

Speaking during a visit to Canada, Calderon said Sanchez's arrest "in no way had any political motive. I even regret that it could generate political tension, a possible confrontation between political parties. I really regret it."

In the northern city of Piedras Negras, meanwhile, a soldier was killed and another wounded when gunmen ambushed army troops inspecting flood-risk zones, the Defense Department said Thursday.

Three gunmen in a car opened fire on the military patrol Wednesday in the city across the border from Eagle Pass, Texas. The soldiers had been inspecting neighborhoods to prepare for floods after several days of heavy rains.

Officials said soldiers captured the gunmen and seized 12 guns, including 10 assault rifles, ammunition and bulletproof vests from the assailants - an arsenal typical of Mexico's brutal drug cartels.

The statement did not say if the gunmen were affiliated with any particular gang.

Soldiers have increasingly come under attack in northeastern Mexico, where the Gulf cartel is battling its former ally, the Zetas gang of hit men.

Mexican and U.S. officials said the Gulf cartel has aligned itself with the Sinaloa and La Familia gangs seeking to wipe out the Zetas in the region.

The Defense Department also said a member of the Arturo Beltran Leyva cartel was killed in a gunbattle with soldiers Wednesday in the northern city of Monterrey.

The agency identified the man as Sergio Adrian Martinez, a former state police officer who was allegedly the leader of the Beltran Leyva cartel's operations in San Pedro Garza Garcia, a wealthy suburb of Monterrey.

http://www.forbes.com/feeds/ap/2010/05/27/general-lt-drug-war-mexico_7643664.html?boxes=financechannelAP

Another mystery flight as Dominican airports become drug hubs

27 May 2010

Santo Domingo. - A small plane that took off from Puerto Plata International Airport (north) with a flight plan towards Venezuela, and which suddenly disappeared from radars, was found in Honduras after transporting as much as 2,000 kilos of cocaine, according to estimates of that country’s antinarcotics authorities.
The finding is the latest in a spate of flights by small planes whose crews are using Dominican Republic as a sort of international operating center of drug transport.

The crew’s last contact, after leaving the country on May 17, was at 10:34 p.m. by Venezuela controllers, but disappeared after it was instructed to reduce altitude according to its destination, but by then it was flying on around 11.500 feet.

Its flight plan noted that after leaving Puerto Plata airport (MDPP) it was to land in Josefa Camejo airport, in the zone Paraguana, in Venezuela’s Falcon state.

Since then the plane’s whereabouts wasn’t known until it was found abandoned in the town San Pedro, Catacamas, Honduras.

When searched, the blue-white U.S. registry N308RH twin engine aircraft model BE-200 and with a crew of two had only the pilot and the copilot seats and the others removed to make room for drugs, Honduran authorities say, and estimate that it’s first landing was in a jungle area in Venezuela where it picked up the cocaine.

They suspect the plane’s final destination was Mexico, but stopped in Honduras to refuel. There they may have changed transport because of damage or got bogged down in when trying to land in a makeshift runway from the mud after heavy rains.

According to Honduras news source laprensa.hn, the crew attempted to set fire to the plane by firing at one of its engines.

http://www.dominicantoday.com/dr/local/2010/5/27/35829/Another-mystery-flight-as-Dominican-airports-become-drug-hubs

239 kilos of cocaine discovered in a container of frozen fish

The team Harc Rotterdam has 239 kilos of cocaine discovered in a container of frozen fish. In connection with the smuggling of drugs four suspects have been arrested.

The container with fish came from Panama by boat in the port of Rotterdam. Based on by the seaport police received information, the container was scanned by customs. Among dozens of boxes of fish were discovered almost two boxes of cocaine. The cocaine was covered with a layer of polyurethane foam. The transporter of the fish had nothing to do with smuggling.

The suspects, a 22-year-old man from Lelystad, a 38-year-old man from Bunschoten, a 19-year-old Albanian and a 47-year-old Bosnian, was arrested on Monday when the container was delivered at the address of destination. Thursday they were put for fourteen days in custody by the judge.

The cocaine, worth around 6 million euros, has been destroyed.

Harc the team (Hit-And-Run Container Team) is a collaboration of the Seaport Police of the Corps of Rotterdam-Rijnmond, the Customs and FIOD-ECD.

21 mei 2010 - Arrondissementsparket Rotterdam

Het HARC-team Rotterdam heeft 239 kilo cocaïne ontdekt in een container met bevroren vis. In verband met de smokkel van de drugs zijn vier verdachten aangehouden.

De container met vis was afkomstig uit Panama en met een zeeschip in de Rotterdamse haven gekomen. Op basis van bij de zeehavenpolitie binnengekomen informatie werd de container door de douanescan gehaald. Tussen tientallen dozen met vis werden bijna twintig dozen ontdekt met cocaïne. De cocaïne was bedekt met een laag purschuim. De transporteur van de vis had niets met de smokkel te maken.

De verdachten, een 22-jarige man uit Lelystad, een 38-jarige man uit Bunschoten, een 19-jarige Albanees en een 47-jarige Bosniër, werden maandag aangehouden toen de container werd afgeleverd. Donderdag werden zij door de rechter-commissaris voor veertien dagen in bewaring gesteld.

De cocaïne, met een waarde van ongeveer 6 miljoen euro, is inmiddels vernietigd.

Het HARC-team (Hit-And-Run-Containerteam) is een samenwerkingsverband van de Zeehavenpolitie van het korps Rotterdam-Rijnmond, de Douane en de FIOD-ECD.

Border officials make massive drugs haul on cruise ship

Tuesday, May 25 2010

Border officers have seized drugs worth an estimated £1.4 million on board a cruise ship.

The haul was made after UK Border Agency officers in Dover searched the cruise liner MSC Opera.

Inside the ship's cabins border officials uncovered around 35 kilos of cocaine.

Eight Latvian and Lithuanians were arrested and have appeared in court charged with drug smuggling.

Seven appeared in Dover Magistrates’ Court on May 22 and the eighth appeared at Folkestone Magistrates’ Court yesterday.

All eight pleaded not guilty and have been remanded in custody.

They will next appear at Dover Magistrates’ Court on May 27. Investigations by UK Border Agency are continuing.

The ship had arrived in Dover on May 21 on its way to Amsterdam from Brazil.

Ray Payne, Border Force South, assistant director for the UK Border Agency, said: "UK Border Agency officers operate maximum vigilance at all our ports and airports to prevent drugs reaching our streets.

"Drugs like cocaine devastate lives and communities and anyone with information about activity they suspect may be linked to drug smuggling should call our hotline on 0800 59 5000."

http://www.kentonline.co.uk/kentonline/news/2010/may/25/massive_drugs_haul_on_ship.aspx

Report: British authorities break up cocaine smuggling operation on cruise ship
Several British news outlets today are reporting that British authorities have made a major drug bust on an MSC Cruises ship visiting the country.

Britain's Kent Online reports the UK Border Agency took eight Latvian and Lithuanian passengers sailing on the MSC Opera into custody after the vessel arrived at the Port of Dover on Friday.

The news outlet says the passengers allegedly had about $2 million worth of cocaine in their cabins. The UK Border Agency reportedly searched the vessel after it arrived from Brazil en route to Amsterdam.

Kent Online says the passengers are scheduled to appear before a judge in Dover on Thursday.

The arrests mark the second major drug bust on a cruise ship in England in two months. On March 27, the UK Border Agency arrested two Spanish passengers on Fred Olsen Lines' Black Watch after they tried to conceal more than $10 million worth of cocaine in the lining of their pants.

The two passengers -- Tanasu De Jesus Quevedo-Ojeda, 28, and Oliver Vidal Hernandez, 27 -- pleaded guilty to smuggling charges and were sentenced Monday by a British judge to 12 years in prison.

The pair had boarded the liner in Peru and planned to stay with the ship as it traveled to the Canary Islands via Southampton.

http://www.usatoday.com/travel/cruises/item.aspx?type=blog&ak=94004.blog

Jailed: The drug smugglers who hid £8m of cocaine in leggings

By Daily Mail Reporter
Last updated at 3:36 PM on 25th May 2010


Two men who concealed £8million worth of cocaine in leggings and attempted to smuggle it into the UK on a luxury cruise liner were both jailed for 12 years yesterday.

Tanasu De Jesus Quevedo-Ojeda, 28, and Oliver Vidal Hernandez, 27, were arrested as they disembarked from the Black Watch liner at Southampton, Hampshire, on Saturday, March 27.

The two unemployed Spanish men had boarded the liner in Peru and planned to stay with the ship as it travelled to the Canary Islands via Southampton.

Southampton Crown Court heard that as the men disembarked at Southampton docks they were found to have 33kg of cocaine concealed in leggings which was destined for the UK, Gran Canaria and Tenerife.

Malcolm Bragg, assistant director of criminal and financial investigations for the UK Border Agency (UKBA), said following the hearing: 'Drugs like cocaine devastate lives and communities and this sentence is a strong warning to anyone who believes drug smuggling is acceptable

'UK Border Agency officers operate maximum vigilance at all our ports and airports to prevent drugs reaching our streets.'

Detective Chief Superintendent Shirley Dinnell, head of CID at Hampshire police, added: 'Hampshire Constabulary along with other law enforcement partners is determined to tackle the supply of controlled drugs in the UK.

'This operation jointly conducted with the UK Border Agency has recovered a significant amount of class A drugs and should act as a clear deterrent to those responsible for causing misery to so many people.'


http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1281215/Drug-smugglers-hid-8m-cocaine-leggings-jailed-12-years.html?ITO=1490

Customs bureau seizes equipment, ingredients of shabu at Port of Manila

May 19, 2010 8:05 pm

MANILA, May 19 — Two 20-footer container vans loaded with laboratory equipment and ingredients for the manufacture of metamphetamine hydrochloride, commonly known as shabu, were seized at the Port of Manila by the Bureau of Customs (BOC) on Wednesday.


According to Customs Commissioner Napoleon Morales, the shipments arrived from Taiwan at the Manila port separately last May 11 and 12, declared as kitchenware and chemical calcium carbonate.

They were apprehended for violation of RA 9165, otherwise known as the Comprehensive Dangerous Drugs Act, Section 101 k in relation to Sec 2530 (f) of the Tariff and Customs Code of the Philippines.

The shipments were consigned to a John Nicole Industrial Sales, with address at Escolta, Manila. A Jose Mariano Jr. was the registered proprietor and broker of the subject shipments, according to official documents.

Broker Mariano has been requested for inquest for the illegal importation.

Initial report from Customs Intelligence Division Chief Dino Tuazon, derogatory information was received from the Anti-Illegal Drugs Special Operations Task Force of the Philippine National Police that the illegal importation will be arriving in the country.

Upon examination, the two containers yielded the equipment and precursor for the manufacture of shabu.

Morales immediately ordered the issuance of the warrant of seizure and detention against the shipment.

“The Bureau of Customs is the country’s first line of defense against these kinds of threat. That is why we have remained vigilant in protecting our borders against these cases of illegal drug trafficking,” Morales said.

The BOC has also notified the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) of this apprehension and will conduct the necessary follow up operations jointly with the PNP anti-drug authorities.

Aside from Morales, PNP General Eduardo Acuña and Customs Intelligence and Investigation Service Director Filomeno Vicencio Jr. were present during the presentation of the illegal shipments to the media. (PNA)

DCT/FGP/utb

http://balita.ph/2010/05/19/customs-bureau-seizes-equipment-ingredients-of-shabu-at-port-of-manila/

Raw materials for illegal drugs seized in Manila port

abs-cbnNEWS.com
Posted at 05/19/2010 11:01 PM | Updated as of 05/19/2010 11:01 PM
MANILA, Philippines – Authorities seized two 20-foot container vans reportedly containing ingredients used in manufacturing illegal drugs in South Pier, Manila on Wednesday.

Confiscated by the combined teams from the Philippine National Police-Anti-Illegal Drugs Special Operations Task Force (PNP-AIDSOTF) and the Bureau of Customs (BOC) were 20 plastic drums of drug precursors and equipment used in making shabu (methamphetamine hydrochloride).

The shipment, which came from Taiwan in two batches, arrived in Manila on May 15.

The first batch carried equipment used in producing shabu like hydrogenators, glass flasks, funnels, strainers and filters, which were hidden in stainless food kiosks.

The second batch carried drums of drug precursors like red phosphorous, hydrochloric acid, iodine and ethyl alcohol. The chemicals were declared by the shipper as calcium chloride and sodium hydroxide.

Authorities said they received a tip from their intelligence counterparts in Taiwan regarding the container vans.

The shipment was supposed to be sent to a shabu laboratory in Mindanao.

http://www.abs-cbnnews.com/nation/metro-manila/05/19/10/raw-materials-illegal-drugs-seized-manila-port

Intercept more than 100 kilos of cocaine in a container of bananas

Intercept more than 100 kilos of cocaine in a container of bananas
MADRID, May 19. (EUROPA PRESS) -

Agents of the National Police in collaboration with the German police - known Landeskriminalamt state of Baden-Württemberg Germany - have arrested six drug traffickers and seized 100 kilograms of cocaine in an operation against international drug trafficking.

Police said, the starting point of the drug was Colombia, where it was transported by sea to Hamburg in the interior of a container with a legal cargo of bananas. From the German city, the drug was moved to Madrid charged hidden behind panels in a vehicle.

The officers seized the drug in the Madrid workshop where they intended to remove these compartments to gain access to cocaine and found that the final destination were other European Union countries.

Apparently, the head of the organization in Colombia operated several companies engaged in exporting fruit to Europe, meaning that it had an infrastructure that facilitated periodic shipment of loaded containers of bananas from legal ports of that country to Europe infrastructure used to try to introduce cocaine into Europe.

THE OPERA IN A LEADING HOTEL OF THE CAPITAL

Officials of the National Police and the Landeskriminalamt held several meetings in Spain and in Germany to conduct joint researches. In parallel, the researchers traveled to both countries to coordinate the operation.

Thus, the leader of the network established numerous contacts with various persons residing in Germany, Holland and Italy, countries to which he also toured with habitual, during the seven-month investigation that has lasted for organizing the shipment. The collection of the cocaine took place during the first week of May at the port of Hamburg, where he went to Spain in a vehicle.

A device allowed two whole police arrest "narcotransportistas" and the group leader, who ran the operation from a hotel in Madrid. In addition, agents intercepted the vehicle on his way to be introduced in a machine shop to remove the panels in which cocaine was camouflaged.

The workshop was detained two people who associate with the work. Also been two house searches, which involved 31 484 euros in cash, 14 cellphones and two laptops.

The research was jointly developed by officers of the Central Narcotics Brigade of the Judicial Police Commissioner-General and Landeskriminalamt state of Baden-Württemberg Germany

DNCD seize over 60 kilos of cocaine in three days

The Dominican Sun

"Daily Dominican Republic News in English Since 2004"

Monday, May 17th, 2010

DNCD seize over 60 kilos of cocaine in three days
Story Text & Photos © 2010 by Listin Diario May 17 2010 04:31AM



Listin Diario - The authorities seized over the weekend more than 60 kilos of cocaine in two raids in the port of Manzanillo, Montecristi, in the east of the province of Santo Domingo. Montecristi The drug was seized on a ship from Belgium, which docked in the bay of Manzanillo to collect several boxcars of bananas for export. DNCD agents seized 32 kilos of cocaine. It was reported that the stash was hidden in the boat on a previous trip he made to the Port of Turbo, Colombia, and it seems that drug dealers could not pick it up in Belgium. MV Summer Flower was requisitioned by the DNCD, alerted by the U.S. Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA, for its acronym in English). DNCD spokesman Roberto Lebron said it was the second major seizure of the last days. On Friday, the DNCD seized another 24 kilos, and arrested a man carrying the drug in an SUV. In Manzanillo, in addition to confiscation of yesterday have been seized



http://www.drsol.info/newsroom/index.php?a=comment&id=52808

Large quantities of cocaine seized at Beirut port

Large quantities of cocaine seized at Beirut port

Customs values illegal Colombian import at $10m
By Carol Rizk
Daily Star staff
Tuesday, May 18, 2010

BEIRUT: More than 100 kilograms of cocaine were found hidden inside a machine imported through the Beirut Port, acting director general of the Customs Administration, Shafiq Merii, announced on Monday.

The substance was being smuggled inside the bobbin of a machine usually used to operate suspended cable cars. The bobbin’s thick layer of lead and Valvoline oil inside the machine prevented police dogs from smelling the drugs and rendered the images given by the scanner unclear.


However, members of the customs administration suspected the presence of drugs and searched inside the metal bobbin. Exactly 102,878 kilograms of pure cocaine were found inside wrapped in transparent nylon bags.


According to Merhi, the amount was worth about $10 million and the operation was “the biggest drug smuggling operation at the Beirut Port.”


Merhi held a news conference to clarify the details of the smuggling and he said a 79 year-old man in the Bekaa has been suspected in the case and has been arrested.


“The importer of the machine is a 79 year-old man and it is clear he had partners working with him. Investigations are ongoing to identify them,” Merhi said.


He explained that three years ago, a company in the Bekaa was created in the name of three people, one of whom was the arrested man. This is the first time the company imported merchandise.

The machine arrived to Beirut on May 1.

Merhi added that the machine was a hydraulic crane imported from Colombia to Lebanon and transported in a container through the Belgian port of Antwerp.



The crane weighed about 7 tons, was filled with metallic oil and contained three bobbins, one of which was hollow and was used to hide the substance.


“Investigating this case was not by accident. It was due to the smart work of the head of the drug combating department at the customs administration,” he added, praising the efforts of the administration’s personnel.


Merhi also thanked the Finance Ministry for its support and said, “Thanks to the patronage and support of the Finance Ministry our personnel has become constantly ready to stop smuggling operations.”


He also addressed the Lebanese and urged them to help protect society from drugs. He referred to the Big Blue campaign launched this week to protect Lebanon’s shores and called on the Lebanese to protect their society as well.


His message to the people was similar to that given by Interior Minister Ziyad Baroud on Saturday when he said drug dealing called for national and international concern.


Baroud spoke during a news conference to announce the arrest of one of Lebanon’s biggest drug traffickers.


The suspect had hundreds of arrest warrants issued against him. He mainly sold heroine and was arrested in Brital in the Bekaa after the judicial police had him under observation over a long period of time.

http://www.dailystar.com.lb/article.asp?edition_id=1&categ_id=2&article_id=114988#ixzz0oHI6R5fT
(The Daily Star :: Lebanon News :: http://www.dailystar.com.lb)

Nigerian politician arrested with cocaine

May 18, 2010 -- Updated 1007 GMT (1807 HKT)

Politician Eme Zuru Ayortor was arrested at the international airport in Lagos, pictured here in 2007.

Nigerian politician tried to smuggle almost five pounds of cocaine in his stomach
Authorities said he was trying to finance his election campaign
Eme Zuru Ayortor told officials he thought his status as politician would help him avoid arrest
A Nigerian politician has been arrested for trying to smuggle almost five pounds of cocaine in his stomach in a scheme to finance his election campaign, authorities said Monday.
Eme Zuru Ayortor, a 52-year-old pharmacist and a hopeful for Nigeria's Edo State House of Assembly, was arrested at the international airport in Lagos, drug officials said.

Officials became suspicious of the politician when a scanning machine in the airport revealed that he was carrying 2.120 kilograms (4.7 pounds) of cocaine in his stomach, according to the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency.

Ayortor was trying to fly to Frankfurt, Germany, the agency said.

"After undergoing observation, the pharmacist turned politician excreted 100 pieces of powdery substance that tested positive to cocaine," the agency said in a statement.

"Preliminary check on him revealed that he was preparing himself financially for the forthcoming election into the Edo State House of Assembly."

The suspect told authorities that he was hoping his status as a politician would help him avoid being arrested.

"We do not look at faces in conducting drug screening and we are not moved by credentials. Whoever is dealing in narcotics shall be exposed and prosecuted," said Ahmadu Giade, chairman of the Nigerian drug agency.

http://edition.cnn.com/2010/WORLD/africa/05/18/nigeria.politician.arrest/

Update seizure of 32 kilos cocaine

The National Drugs Control Agency (DNCD) hit drug trafficking by occupying the port of Manzanillo, Montecristi, a load of 29 packets of cocaine, weighing more than 32 kilos, was unloading a ship that arrived from Belgium, but apparently could not be unloaded.
The drug, which was in a container carried by the MV Summer Flower, was detected by members of the DNCD in collaboration with agents of the Drug Enforcement Administration United States (DEA), the agency that the Dominican authorities warned that the above boat came with cocaine.
DNCD spokesman Roberto Lebron, it is reported that the second shipment of cocaine in the busy terminal in the last 45 days, precisely on board a vessel that also came from Belgium to load of bananas in manzanillo. The first shipment of 62 kilos was occupied on March 28 aboard the ship Summer Wind.
He said the anti-drug chief, Maj. Gen. Rolando Rosado Mateo, ordered an investigation of the case, for the purpose of capturing in the shortest time possible ioperación involved in drug trafficking. The vessel where the drug was to sail from Manzanillo port of Turbo, in Colombia, where apparently the shipment was made several weeks ago.
The drug employed in the presence of the prosecutor Rafael A. Sanchez was in the container triu-838655-1, even though the ship were also lowered other two, those numbers TRLU-164098-8 and 163721-7 TRLU ". In the van were prepared two compartments with mounds of metal and they were introduced 616 and 13 packages.
Lebron did not specify whether there are detainees in relation to the case. The cargo was transferred to DNCD headquarters in Santo Domingo, to be sent to forensic laboratory and then submit it to the media at a press conference, by operation of the agency head.
This happened to another seizure was made on Friday in Santo Domingo Este, where a team of agency, in the presence of a prosecutor in that jurisdiction, seized 24 packages in an action similar to a drug dealer was caught carrying the drug in a jeep , which was seized along with the narcotic substance, as published elnacional.com.do.
Lebron recalled that at the end of last March 62 packages were taken in batches of 34 and 28, in two vans held in that port, operation in which three people were caught and found modern communications equipment used by an integrated drug ring by Colombians, and Dominicans Belgian.
The detainees were then Johnny White HICI Then, Jose Juan Cabral and Francisco Humberto Cerda Pérez Camino, the latter deported from the United States and a repeat offender brought to justice in July of 2005 by 76 kilos 130 grams of pure cocaine occupied in Azul.

Watch out!: Coke men in suits, EU police warn

Last Updated: Wednesday, 12 May 2010, 8:14 GMT



The European Police have warned Ghana to be on the alert for the influx of drug moguls from Latin American states under the guise of bringing investment into the country.

They said the drug barons were exploiting the conducive business climate and political stability to establish bases in Ghana and other West African countries to conduct their illicit business in drugs.

The Deputy Director of the British Serious Organised Crime Agency (SOCA) responsible for Cocaine, Mr Neil Giles; the Deputy Director-General of the French National Anti-Narcotics Bureau (OCTRlS), Mr Jean-Jacques Colombi, and Mr Andrea Rossi of the Italian Police gave the warning in an interview with the Daily Graphic in Accra Tuesday.

The team, which also includes Antonia Mena Lopez, the Head of the National Drugs Intelligence Unit of Spain, is in the country as part of a three-nation West African tour to raise issues over the influx of drugs in and out of West Africa by Latin American barons into Europe and North America.

The team will seek to strengthen relationships with the countries visited and seek to address the operational challenges facing drug enforcement agencies in West Africa to enable the sub-region to deal with the drug problem.

Mr Giles said there was strong evidence of the drug barons using money to buy influence at the political, law enforcement and judicial levels, adding that it was important that West African countries and their citizens understood the threats posed by those barons and how to deal with them.

West Africa was the target because of the strong trade relations between it and Europe, which the barons had capitalised on in their attempt to ship large consignments of cocaine to Europe under the guise of exporting various food items and other commodities, he said.

"The threat to West Africa is real and unless we continue to operate and collaborate effectively, West Africa will be in serious trouble," he said, and referred to the recent interception of an aircraft loaded with cocaine on the tarmac in Freetown, Sierra Leone, as a signal that with the right systems in place, West Africa could stand up to the menace.

"Ghana must be more alert. You will deter the barons by being more alert; it is as simple as that," he advised.

Mr Giles emphasised international collaboration and said it was because of it that the team was visiting Ghana, Senegal and The Gambia to develop a system of sharing information and working in partnership to achieve positive results.

He, however, said that would require having partners with integrity; saying that "in the face of the resourcefulness of the traffickers, they will interfere with the political, judicial and law enforcement systems to have their way".

Mr Giles commended Ghana for being at the forefront in the fight against drugs.

Mr Colombi said there had been a dramatic decline in the courier traffic from Ghana to Europe, noting that what that meant was that "what we are doing here is bearing fruit".

He said Ghana had been able to find the right response to dealing with courier traffickers but was quick to add that it could also mean that the drug barons can changed their ways, hence the need to collaborate and look elsewhere.

Credit: Daily Graphic/Ghana




http://news.myjoyonline.com/news/201005/46026.asp

Police: 'pilgrims' didn't pray, they smuggled

The Associated Press
Italian police say drug smugglers pretending to be pilgrims slipped cocaine into Italy in their luggage as part of a trafficking ring coordinated by a convent's doorman.
Carabinieri police say the nuns at the convent in the northern city of Piacenza didn't have a clue about the smuggling operation and were stunned when the doorman, from an unidentified South American country, was arrested early Wednesday.

More than 30 other suspects were arrested. They include two alleged Milan-based mobsters from the Calabrian 'ndrangheta crime syndicate, which investigators alleged imported cocaine from Colombia's main drug cartels into Europe via Africa or on passengers flying from South America to Italy.

Police say they seized 30 kilograms of cocaine, which was refined in Italy for street sale. No estimate of the drug's worth was given.

http://www.kansascity.com/2010/05/12/1941770/police-pilgrims-didnt-pray-they.html