French customs authorities have seized nearly 3.9 tonnes of cocaine worth an estimated €225 million (about US$261.45 million) from a container of plastic waste that arrived at the northern port of Dunkirk from Ghana.
The major seizure in France was made on Thursday, September 10, according to Reuters, after French authorities launched a targeted operation against a criminal network suspected of organising the shipment.
The cocaine was reportedly concealed inside the container, which had arrived from Ghana and was partly destined for Antwerp, Belgium.
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France’s organised crime prosecutor’s office said the operation was carried out by the judicial police as part of efforts to dismantle an international criminal network involved in the movement of narcotics into Europe.
Authorities subsequently destroyed the seized cocaine, while prosecutors opened an investigation into the shipment and the criminal network allegedly responsible for transporting it.
The investigation is examining suspected offences including the organised importation of narcotics and participation in a criminal association.
Under French law, the offences under investigation carry potential prison sentences of up to 10 years.
The €225 million cocaine seizure represents one of the latest major interceptions by European authorities seeking to disrupt international drug trafficking networks and prevent large consignments of cocaine from reaching European markets.
The shipment’s route from Ghana to France is expected to come under particular scrutiny as investigators seek to establish how the cocaine was concealed in the plastic-waste container, who organised the shipment and the individuals or groups involved in its movement.
French authorities have not publicly disclosed further details about suspects or arrests linked to the operation.
The investigation remains ongoing as prosecutors work to establish the full extent of the alleged trafficking network and determine how the cocaine entered the container before it was shipped to Europe.
The seizure also highlights the increasingly sophisticated methods used by international drug trafficking organisations to conceal narcotics in legitimate commercial cargo.
European law enforcement agencies have intensified cooperation and targeted operations aimed at intercepting major drug shipments and dismantling the networks responsible for moving cocaine across international borders.
French investigators are focused on tracing the cocaine shipment from its origin in Ghana through its arrival at Dunkirk and identifying those allegedly responsible for the attempted importation.