Spanish police has announced the seizure of a record 13 tonnes (14.3 US tons) of cocaine.
According to Spanish authorities, this is the largest cocaine haul in Spain’s history, the second largest in the EU, and one of the largest in the world.
At the port of Algeciras on Wednesday, police uncovered a big narcotics cargo hidden in a crate of bananas from Ecuador.
Authorities said the bananas were being delivered to a Spanish importer who has been getting huge quantities of fruit from Ecuador for years.
However, the Ecuadorian exporter appeared in a database with a background of illicit drug trafficking, which triggered the inspection.
The drugs were camouflaged as bananas, placed inside fruit boxes, and hidden behind screens.
Authorities have conducted five further raids on houses and offices in Madrid and Alicante.
One person has been detained, and police have issued arrest orders for two executives from the importation company.
This cocaine raid shatters Spanish records. Previously, the largest cocaine seizures were 9.4 tonnes in 2023 and 8.7 tonnes in 2018.
In 2023, Spain became the primary point of entry for cocaine into Europe based on the volume of seizures, according to an analysis by InSight Crime.
