After the seizure by the Italian authorities of 850 kg of cocaine on a Greek bulk carrier, the company Laskaridis Shipping assured Friday, April 21 that "neither
the crew nor the company were involved
" in this traffic.
"
Laskaridis Shipping, which commercially manages the bulk carrier Atlas, is assisting the (Italian) authorities in the investigation being carried out,
" the company said in a press release.
Worth 150 million euros, the cargo of cocaine was hidden in a bulk carrier belonging to the Greek company but flying the Liberian flag.
Ship's pipes
The ship left the port of Santos in Brazil on March 23 and arrived via the Strait of Gibraltar at Venice in Italy on April 17.
"
The contraband was detected by the Italian authorities while the ship was moored in Venice,
" said the press release from the Greek company.
It was hidden in pipes of the ship located in the hold "
about eleven meters below the waterline (...) in a part which is not accessible from the inside and which can only be accessed by divers
adds Laskaridis Shipping.
Drug trafficking in Europe is largely controlled by the 'Ndrangheta, a powerful Calabrian mafia, which shares the market with other criminal groups according to their location and their specialties (logistics, protection, money laundering, etc.).
Italian customs police discovered on Monday two tons of cocaine, worth 400 million euros, packaged in bales drifting in the open sea near Sicily.
Europol today estimates the annual cocaine retail market on the old continent at between 7.6 and 10.5 billion euros.