Nearly one tonne of cocaine seized at Tanger Med port, trafficking network dismantled
More than 971 kg of cocaine from Brazil seized at Tanger Med. Interpol Rabat coordinated the operation with the DGSN and Moroccan customs.
Tanger Med: Interpol Rabat and the DGSN neutralise a cocaine trafficking network
The Central National Bureau (Interpol Rabat), attached to the Directorate General of National Security (DGSN), has dismantled a criminal network involved in an attempt to transport nearly one tonne of cocaine from Brazil to West Africa, reports fr.le360.ma citing the daily newspaper Al Ahdath Al Maghribia of Thursday 5 November. The operation was thwarted at Tanger Med port before the cargo reached its final destination.
The drugs were concealed inside a refrigerated container aboard a ship flying the flag of a South American state. The national security services and port customs officials conducted a joint raid, resulting in the seizure of 971 kilogrammes of cocaine in tablet form.
Itinerary reconstructed, judicial inquiry opened
The initial elements of the investigation made it possible to establish that the cargo had departed from Brazilian ports in transit to West Africa via Tanger Med. A judicial file has been opened under the supervision of the competent prosecutor to identify all the ramifications of the network. Interpol Rabat oversaw the surveillance and inspection operations in connection with international cooperation mechanisms.
Context: growing pressure on cocaine routes
This seizure continues a previous operation conducted jointly by European customs and Moroccan National Security, which had made it possible to intercept more than 112 kilogrammes of cocaine. The Moroccan Minister of the Interior had also indicated, approximately one year ago, that national security operations had resulted in the seizure of more than 681 kilogrammes of cocaine within a seven-month period.
The Strait of Gibraltar constitutes one of the main transit points for international cocaine trafficking from Latin America. Moroccan and Spanish authorities maintain coordinated surveillance over this route. Notable previous seizures include a record seizure carried out in October 2014 at the port of Algeciras, where Spanish police intercepted more than 13 tonnes of cocaine concealed in the structure of a refrigerated lorry purporting to transport bananas from Ecuador.
Source: Google News MA — Crime (fr)