Gambian authorities seized nearly three tonnes of cocaine from a shipment of industrial salt originating in Ecuador, a spokesman said on Friday, in one of the largest ever busts in West Africa.
The 118 bags of cocaine were discovered on Thursday during a search of a container shipped from the port of Guayaquil in Ecuador and through Algeciras in Spain, said Ousman Saidybah, a spokesman for Gambia’s drug enforcement agency.
It was not clear where the cocaine was ultimately headed. Drug smugglers generally use West Africa as a transshipment point for cocaine en route from South America to Europe, and Saidybah said the drugs were not intended for local consumption.
“This seizure is yet another confirmation that the Gambia, like other West African states, continues to be a storage and transit route for cocaine by international organised criminal groups,” he told reporters.
Record quantities of cocaine were seized in West Africa in 2019, including 9.5 tonnes from a ship that docked in Cape Verde.
The coronavirus pandemic has disrupted the illegal narcotics trade but drug kingpins have responded by packing larger loads of cocaine into the fewer container ships and commercial airplanes in circulation, officials say.
Follow us on:
IPOB distanced itself from Simon Ekpa, calling him a “destructive agent” who infiltrated and destabilised…
Biden has condemned ICC's arrest warrants for Netanyahu and Gallant, calling them "outrageous" amid global…
Chukwuma Ezeala has said that despite Simon Ekpa’s arrest, identifying his disciples in Southeast Nigeria…
The federal government has reinstated Professor Joseph Ikechebelu as acting Vice-Chancellor of UNIZIK, nullifying Professor…
Court of Appeal has overturned the Federal High Court ruling barring INEC from releasing voter…
Kenya has cancelled airport and energy deals with Adani following US bribery and fraud charges…