Máté Csupor, head of the National Bureau of Investigation's Drug Crime Unit, put the street value of the seized cocaine at 15 billion forints (EUR 42.2 million), describing it as the largest drug seizure ever made in Hungary.

The drugs were hidden among a shipment of bananas loaded in Ecuador.



According to investigators, the consignment left Ecuador on 18 October, was transshipped through Panama, and arrived at Germany’s Bremen port in mid-November before being sent onwards to Central Europe.

French customs alerted Hungarian authorities on 24 November that narcotics were believed to be concealed in 20 containers destined for Hungary and Romania.

Despite initial inspections by German authorities proving unsuccessful, Hungarian investigators, working together with German customs, the National Tax and Customs Administration (NAV), and law enforcement agencies in the Czech Republic and Slovakia, launched a cross-border operation.

At Csepel Freeport in Budapest, officers examined around 7,000 banana boxes and discovered 438 blocks of cocaine concealed on a single pallet, weighing a total of 522kg.

Officials said international container-based cocaine trafficking from Ecuador and Colombia to Europe has doubled in recent years, with shipments increasingly arriving through German ports such as Hamburg and Bremen rather than only through Rotterdam and Antwerp.

The authorities also revealed that a further 72kg cocaine shipment, worth an estimated 2 billion forints, was intercepted in Hungary this spring as part of an intensified joint effort to combat container-based drug smuggling.

Photo: Police.hu

*********************************************************************************************

You're very welcome to comment, discuss and enjoy more stories via our Facebook page: 

Facebook.com/XpatLoopNews + via XpatLoop’s groups: Budapest Expats / Expats Hungary

You can subscribe to our newsletter here: XpatLoop.com/Newsletters

Showcase Your Business to Expats in the Loop:

As an independent portal we’re grateful to all commercial supporters who help keep you in the loop with fresh insights and inspiration. Do you want your business to reach tens of thousands of potential high-value expat customers? If so please contact us here.