OREANDA-NEWS. In the port of Hamburg, customs during the inspection of cargo from Paraguay seized a record amount of cocaine for Europe. According to the press service of the Hamburg Customs Office on Wednesday, February 24, in four containers, that aroused the suspicion of the customs authorities of several European countries, there were tin cans with putty.

As a result of the inspection, customs officers found more than 16,000 kg of cocaine in more than 1,700 banks — the largest batch of this drug ever seized in Europe. On a global scale, this is one of the largest volumes detected by customs officials.

In the following days, German and Dutch investigative authorities jointly carried out operational actions, as a result of which another 7,200 kg of cocaine was seized in the port of Antwerp, Belgium. On February 24, a 28-year-old resident of Flaardingen was detained in the Netherlands, who is suspected of importing a total of 23 tons of cocaine, the value of which is estimated at several billion euros.

Further investigations are being conducted on behalf of the Hamburg Prosecutor's Office in close cooperation with the Dutch law enforcement authorities.