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Greek police seize over 270 kilos of cocaine with a market value over 5.5 million euros. 3 arrested

Greek police seize over 270 kilos of cocaine with a market value over 5.5 million euros. 3 arrested

Washington Post7 days ago
THESSALONIKI, Greece — Greek police said Sunday they seized over 270 kilograms (595 pounds) of cocaine with an estimated value of over 5.5 million euros ($6.5 million) and arrested three men. The cocaine was hidden inside a container of bananas imported from Ecuador, they said.
Police had been informed by the United Kingdom's National Crime Agency that the cocaine would be carried by a ship headed to the northern Greek port of Thessaloniki.
Police officers found the cocaine and removed most of the drug contained in brick-sized packages from the container before it was loaded into a truck. They released a short video of the removal operation.
The truck headed for the Athens suburb of Aspropyrgos, more that 500 kilometers (310 miles) to the south, where the police arrested three men as they opened the container Saturday.
The total amount of cocaine seized was 271.15 kilos (598 pounds), police said.
The arrested men include two Greeks, the 40-year-old owner of a haulage company, a 32-year-old and a 47-year-old Bulgarian citizen, police say, adding that the Bulgarian was in touch with a drug gang and organized the picking up and transport of the container. The 32-year-old was in charge of distributing the drug through unnamed gang members.
Police are looking for more people they say belong to a drug distribution gang. The three arrested men will face a prosecutor Monday.
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