Cocaine seizures increasing along Antilles coast

Cocaine seizures increasing along Antilles coast

2024-08-31 03:00:10
On May 2, 2024, the surveillance frigate “Ventôse” transported 54 packages of cocaine seized off the coast of Martinique.

On Monday, August 19, in Martinique, the frigate ventos Return to the port of Fort-de-France. The Antilles Armed Forces (FAA) warship did not return alone: ​​beside it was a fishing boat about twenty meters long, with faded white paint and flying the Brazilian flag. The vast haul he carried was displayed on the docks of Fort St. Louis, about 300 packages of cocaine spread out on about 30 pallets: a total of 10.5 tons of cocaine.

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This is the total amount of cocaine seized by France in the Antilles in all of 2023 (to the nearest half a ton). Production in the Antilles reached 6.7 tonnes.

The nine passengers on board – six Brazilians, two Venezuelans and one Colombian – have been handed over to police from the Anti-Narcotics Office (Ofast), who will continue to investigate. A few days ago, the information they provided triggered an interception mission 1,200 kilometers off the coast of Martinique. To achieve this, their information must flow across multiple sectors and different countries. “Cross-referencing and leveraging information takes a lot of work, but it will pay off in the end.Fort-de-France prosecutor Clarisse Taron said. It’s not just France that’s affected by the import of cocaine, all the ports in Western Europe are affected, so a lot of countries are working with us in this region of the Antilles. »

a common information jar

in his report “Threat status”Revealed in world In February 2024, Ofast highlighted that the Caribbean islands, closest to South American producers and located on historic global maritime transport routes, are one of the main transit areas for cocaine. The office clearly states “Port and complex in Fort-de-France, Martinique [logistique et industriel] Dejarry in Guadeloupe therefore represents a privileged site for the rebound.

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To kick off the collaboration, Ofast shared information with the Maritime Intelligence Analysis Operations Center for Narcotics (MAOC-N). Created in 2007 and funded by the European Commission, it centralizes and shares intelligence produced by its members (France, Ireland, Italy, Spain, the Netherlands, Portugal, the United Kingdom and, since 2024, Germany and Belgium). Based in Lisbon, it brings together liaison officers from different countries, police and military forces to facilitate exchanges between countries with different legislative frameworks and intelligence approaches.

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