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Senegal’s landmark cocaine seizure highlights West Africa’s role in global drug trade
Senegalese customs officials intercepted over a tonne of cocaine with an estimated street value of $146 million.
The seizure occurred on April 14 in the town of Kidira, located in eastern Senegal, marking the largest cocaine haul on a land route in the nation's history, the authorities said in a statement.
The Directorate General of Customs reported that the confiscated cocaine weighed 1,137.6 kilograms. The statement, released on April 15, detailed how the narcotics were cleverly concealed.
The drug, packaged in bricks and placed in bags, was hidden in a double bottom of a refrigerated truck arriving from a neighbouring country, the customs officials disclosed, without specifying the country of origin.
Senegal is bordered by Guinea, The Gambia, Guinea-Bissau, Mauritania, and Mali. These nations are recognised as key transit zones for drugs produced in Latin America en route to European markets.
This recent seizure in Senegal follows several large busts in the region. In October 2021, the Senegalese navy captured more than 2 tonnes of cocaine off its coast, shortly after a similar 2.5-tonne seizure by neighbouring country Benin, as reported by AFP.
Additionally, in January of the same year, Gambia’s Drug Law Enforcement Agency seized nearly 3 tonnes of cocaine at its port in a shipment that originated from Ecuador.
These incidents highlight the ongoing challenge faced by West Africa, which has become a pivotal corridor for smuggling South American narcotics to Europe.
Reports indicate that Nigeria, in particular, has emerged as a crucial transit hub, forging growing connections with drug trafficking syndicates from South and Central America.
