Antilles record seizure of 2.2 tons of cocaine through customs – The Obs

Fort-de-France (AFP) – The French authorities have put a hand on Wednesday 2.2 tons of cocaine, a record catch for customs, in a sailboat off the coast of Martinique, after an operation International prepared for two years.

Three suspects, two Spaniards and a Venezuelan, were detained on board the ship, said Saturday AFP Antilles-Guyane head of the National Intelligence Directorate and Customs Investigations (DNRED), Michael Lachaux.

There were 2.2 tons of cocaine on board, said at a press conference in Fort-de-France the prosecutor Eric Corbaux, adding that the drug was Saturday being destroyed under surveillance.

The value of the cargo seized is estimated at € 70 million, said for his part Riondet Simon, head of ‘Caribbean branch of the Central Office for the Suppression of the Illicit Traffic in Narcotic Drugs (OCRTIS).

In a statement, Finance Minister Michel Sapin and the Secretary of State for the Budget Christian Eckert, on which customs, rejoiced the success of an operation described as “difficult and risky.”

This dramatic decision represents one third of the total (6.6 tons) of cocaine seizures by French customs during the full year 2014. “This is a record for the customs and police,” the head of DNRED. The most important decision “white” by the French authorities (4.3 tonnes) was conducted in November 2006 on a Panamanian cargo ship by the Navy already off Martinique.

The region Caribbean is a hub of drug trafficking, close to three major producing countries (Peru, Colombia and Bolivia), which alone produces about 1,000 tons of cocaine per year, almost a quarter is for Europe . Entering this week, “illustrates the strategy of the shield is to protect Europe by acting closer to the production areas of cocaine”, welcomed Simon Riondet

-. ‘At night by stormy seas’ –

This is the result of a two-year investigation by the French customs information in connection with the Spanish and British services

It. mobilized a plane and two stars customs Coast Guard Wednesday around 9:00 p.m. (local time), about 200-220 kilometers offshore of Martinique. “The three suspects, who were on board a yacht of 20 meters, have refused to submit to the control. We had to stop the boat at night by a raging sea,” he told AFP Michael Lachaux of DNRED.

In the boat, the “Silandra”, traveling under a false American flag, the security forces found no less than 80 bales in which cocaine was packaged. “There were everywhere,” do we commented at customs.

The two Spaniards arrested were “unfavorably known” police and customs services for drug trafficking offenses, according to Michael lachaux. The name of one of them is related to “acts of terrorism in the 80s,” he added, referring to the Basque separatist organization ETA. “This is a profile that can be found from time to time, former terrorists who are retraining in smuggling activities,” he commented.

The three men were Saturday custody – a move that can last 96 hours in drug cases – Fort-de-France. They should be brought before a judge earlier this week.