E-MAIL THIS LINK
To: 

Spain Police Seize 4 Tons of Cocaine in Cow Hide Shipment
[An Nahar] Spanish police said Wednesday they had seized 4.1 tons of cocaine worth nearly a quarter of a billion euros in one of the biggest ever seizures of the drug in the country.

The cocaine was found at a warehouse in the eastern city of Elche, hidden in containers of cow hides that came by boat from Colombia and were to be delivered to a shoe maker, police said in a statement.

The cocaine was stored in thousands of packages containing just over a kilo (two pounds) of the drug each, enough for around 82 million doses.

The cocaine is worth nearly 242 million euros ($327 million) and was destined for distribution in Spain and across Europe.

Police detained three Spanish men, including the suspected leader of the drug trafficking ring, and searched 16 houses, businesses and warehouses that belonged to the suspects.

The authorities seized two shotguns, a hunting rifle, a box of ammunition, three machetes, two computers, and six luxury vehicles, as well as 6,755 euros in cash.

Police swooped on traffickers just as they appeared to be getting ready to remove the cocaine from the warehouse in several trucks.
Posted by: Fred 2013-02-07
http://www.rantburg.com/poparticle.php?ID=361778