According to U.K. border officials, around $44 million (P2.2 billion) worth of cocaine was found in an onion ring cargo in Coquelles, France.
The 922-pound shipment was destined for the U.K. before it was stopped by Border Force officers, according to the country’s National Crime Agency (NCA).
Piotr Perzenowski, a 30-year-old man from Poland, has been charged with smuggling class A drugs. He appeared at Folkestone Magistrates’ Court in Kent on Saturday morning and was ordered to appear at Canterbury Crown Court on December 13.
“This was a really significant amount of drugs taken out of circulation,” NCA’s branch commander Mark Howes said in a statement. “The seizure will deprive the [organized] crime group responsible for them of profit which would have fueled more offending.”
“Working with our partners such as Border Force we will continue to fight the Class A drugs threat in our mission to protect the public,” he added.
Europe has seen a string of drug busts in recent months; in October, Portuguese police, in collaboration with Spanish, British and U.S. authorities, seized more than five metric tons of cocaine off a 79-foot yacht. The $232 million (PHP11.7 billion ) shipment was the largest seizure by Portuguese authorities in more than 15 years.
In the same month, U.S. and European law enforcement officials took 150 people into custody after seizing more than $31 million in cash and virtual currency. The 10-month investigation, which looked into the sale of contraband sold on the dark web, saw the recovery of 45 guns and a number of drugs, such as amphetamine, cocaine, and MMDA.
Art Daniella Sison
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