The value of cocaine discovered in a shipment of bananas and in a suitcase belonging to a Peruvian woman is nearly 20 million

The Customs Agency on March 25 gave a briefing on the seized drug shipments.

Details of the cases were provided by Stefan Bakalov, the head of the "Fight against Drug Trafficking" department.

"On March 21, in two separate operations, a total of 47 kilograms of cocaine were seized. The majority, 40 kg, were seized at the port of Burgas and the rest at the capital's airport. This is part of the increased control by customs officials."

The seized shipment in Burgas arrived from Ecuador, with the container's contents declared as bananas. Thirty-five packages containing 40 kilogrammes of cocaine were discovered.

More than 40 kg of cocaine found in a shipment of bananas at port of Burgas

At Sofia Airport, a passenger arriving from Peru was detained. Seven kilogrammes of drugs were discovered in two of her suitcases, hidden within the pages of the luggage. The passenger was selected based on the "risk analysis" method.

Cocaine worth nearly BGN 2 million seized by customs officers at the capital's airport

"The quality of the drug is extremely high. From its dilution, a significant quantity can be obtained. I think this is similar to a case from 15 or 20 years ago involving cocaine base, which had not been seen in the last 20 or 30 years," Bakalov noted.

The total estimated value of the two cocaine shipments is around 20 million BGN.

Stefan Bakalov pointed out that the "couriers" from Latin America are currently the cheapest "couriers" willing to do anything because of the living conditions in their countries. They are becoming increasingly inventive in their attempts to circumvent customs control.

The companies through which the narcotics were imported in the banana shipment have been identified, and checks are currently ongoing. The company is one of those that traditionally imports bananas.

Stefan Bakalov also stated that the total quantity of drugs seized by the Customs Agency last year amounted to 10 tons and 360 kilogrammes.

Seventy-two kilograms of cocaine have been seized since the beginning of this year. In comparison, not a single gram was seized during the same period last year.