This is the moment customs police seize a huge stash of cocaine worth USD 5.3 million hidden on a cargo ship in Turkey.
Officers confiscated nearly 52 kilogrammes of the drug packed into 45 parcels which investigators believe had been taken on board during a stop in Puerto Bolivar, Colombia.
Video footage of the raid on 12th November shows police divers searching the ship’s massive hull and anchor chain.
They are also seen shining powerful torches on the ship’s huge propeller as part of the search in Iskenderun Bay near the province of Adana.
The film goes on to show police hauling a black plastic bin liner from what looks like a storage compartment in the deck.
As they cut it open, one officer slices through one of the packages to reveal a block of white powder inside.
Police say the Liberian-registered Berge Torre cargo ship, operated by Berge Bulk, had left Colombia on 19th October.
The ship’s captain and 25 crew members were held on the ship for questioning.
Turkey’s Minister of Internal Affairs Ali Yerlikaya took to social media to warn traffickers not to see the country as an easy route into Europe.
He said: “I want our citizens to be aware that we will not tolerate ‘poison dealers.’
“Our efforts against illicit substance traffickers across the country will continue to escalate. We maintain vigilant monitoring of our ports.”
