Authorities in Ivory Coast have seized a record haul of more than two tonnes of pure cocaine, with a street value of about 41 billion CFA francs ($67.7 million). Large cocaine seizures are rare but have become increasingly common along the West African Atlantic Coast.
The cocaine was seized from traffickers this month in a police operation that took place in the commercial capital Abidjan and the port city of San Pedro, the interior ministry said in a statement on Saturday. Nine people, including Ivorians and foreign nationals, have been arrested and investigations are under way.
Major drug hauls in Ivory Coast are rare and the latest find is double the size of the previous record seizure in February when just more than one tonne of cocaine was retrieved in a night operation in the northern district of Abidjan.
Large cocaine seizures have become increasingly common along the West African Atlantic Coast, a frequent stopping point for South American drugs heading to Europe. About 40 tonnes pass through the region annually, according to the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development.According to the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, the country’s current political division and the absence of sufficient government control in its northern region are making drug trafficking, as well as that of people and natural resources, more prevalent. Ethnic and regional rivalries have lingered in the country, one of West Africa’s largest economies.SOURCE: ALJAZEERAIMAGE CREDITS: ISTOCK
