Dutch police announced on Tuesday (June 29th) that they had seized nearly three tonnes of cocaine and more than 11 million euros in cash from a farm near Amsterdam Airport Schiphol, one of the largest drug seizures in its assets.
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The police raided this property on Thursday, June 24, located near the village of De Kwakel, a few kilometers south of Schiphol, after a long-term investigation. They arrested a suspect. A second suspect was then arrested in a car nearby, police said in a statement.
The cocaine seized has a resale value on the illicit market of 195 million euros, police said, adding: "
it is one of the largest seizures in the history of the Amsterdam police
".
Police also seized € 11.3 million in cash as well as luxury items including expensive wines, a vintage car and a book worth € 12,500 on legendary American boxer Muhammad Ali, television reported. Dutch public
NOS
.
Six weapons, silencers, ammunition and money counters were also seized.
The Netherlands, a major hub for drugs arriving in Europe
The two suspects, aged 54 and 29 respectively, are in custody and face charges of large-scale drug trafficking, police said. The cocaine "
is likely part of a Latin American drug circuit
" and more arrests are expected, the statement added.
The Netherlands is a major hub for drugs, especially cocaine, arriving in Europe mainly via Rotterdam, the largest European port.
Europol was concerned, in its last report published in April, to see the continent inundated by "
unprecedented quantities of cocaine
", from Latin America and "
generating profits of several billion euros
" for the networks criminals from these two areas.
In addition, the purity of the cocaine thus conveyed is now at "
the highest level ever reached in the EU
", added the European police agency.
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Cocaine trafficking "
fuels criminal structures which use their enormous resources to infiltrate and undermine the EU economy, public institutions and society,
" Europol noted. In February, the Belgian, Dutch and German police seized a record of some 23 tonnes of cocaine destined for the Netherlands, in containers at the German ports of Hamburg and Belgian ports of Antwerp. The resale value has been estimated to be “
between 1.5 and 3.5 billion euros
” if the drugs are cut, according to the head of customs in Hamburg, René Matschke.
