Over Two Tons of Illegal Substance Found in 42 Banana Boxes; Said to be Latvia's "Biggest-Ever Drug Bust"



Over Two Tons of Illegal Substance Found in 42 Banana Boxes; Said to be Latvia's "Biggest-Ever Drug Bust"


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KOKNESE, LATVIA - A whole new year means a different kind of resolution than what we might have had in mind for the country of Latvia and five of its citizens that hoped to bring in a record amount of cocaine under the guise of harmless bananas.

Yes, five Latvians were reportedly arrested Monday in the central town of Koknese for attempting to smuggle over two tons of Ecuadorian cocaine in the fruit packages, according to news source Business Standard.

Andrejs Grisins, Police Chief, Criminal Division, Latvia"This coke shipment was most certainly destined for some other country, presumably to drug dealers in Scandinavia," Latvian Police Chief of the Criminal Division Andrejs Grisins told reporters. "We confiscated 2,195 bricks of 80 percent pure cocaine that were packed into 42 banana boxes."

While an exact street value wasn’t given, Chief Grisins said the confiscated drugs had a potential street value of up to a billion euros (over $1.1 billion US dollars).

Five Latvians were reportedly arrested Monday in the central town of Koknese for attempting to smuggle over two tons of Ecuadorian cocaine in banana boxes

Luckily, officials were able to seize the cocaine and apprehend the smugglersa joint effort between Latvian and Ecuadoran police, as well as the United States Drug Enforcement Agency, Latvian police chief Ints Kuzis said.

As for those captured? Up to 15 years in prison for what is being called the largest drug bust in Latvian history.