Brazil seizes 3.6 tonnes of cocaine in single-largest offshore capture

The Brazilian Navy said on Tuesday (September 19) that it seized d 3.6 metric tonnes of cocaine on a boat off the coast of northeastern Pernambuco state. This is the largest single off-shore capture of the drug by Brazil. Citing an official statement, the news agency Reuters reported that the navy captured a small boat used for transporting people and cargo along the coast with five crew members heading to Africa.

The ship was towed by the patrol vessel to the port of Recife. Joao Batista, a captain in the navy said on Tuesday, "Yesterday in the morning, the Brazilian Navy was put into action and a Federal Police team boarded in Natal. Today in the morning, the boat set off to the Recife coast to carry out the operation on a vessel that had illicit drugs on board."

This seizure follows a series of operations held by the Navy to fight drug transportation on the country's coast. Since 2020, over 17 tonnes of cocaine, 4.3 tonnes of hashish, 695 tonnes of cigarettes, 113.34 tonnes of fish, 14 tonnes of marijuana and 3,146 cubic meters of wood have been seized, the navy said.

In May this year, Brazilian law enforcement agencies seized 251 kilogrammes of cocaine from a ship in the port of Santos. According to local media, the drug was discovered hidden in an underwater compartment of a ship.

This combined operation involved teams from the Revenue Service, Federal Police, Brazilian Navy, Military Police, and the Environmental Police. Using a speedboat, the agents approached the ship and discovered 251 kg of cocaine concealed in black bags inside a compartment.

The confiscated drugs were taken aboard the speed boat.

(With inputs from agencies)

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