Boxes with Trackers Floating in the Sea... It Was '600 Billion Won Worth of Cocaine'

Italy's Largest Drug Bust
Suspected Abandonment by Drug Dealer

Italian police have recovered about 2 tons (t) of cocaine bundles floating off the coast of Sicily. It is reported to be the largest amount of drugs seized in Italy to date.

According to ANSA news agency on the 17th (local time), the Italian financial police and customs seized approximately 70 cocaine packages floating in the sea east of Sicily.

Earlier, police discovered the packages floating near the island during an aerial patrol. Suspicious of the situation, the police arrived at the scene and retrieved the packages. Inside were cocaine.

Drug packages found by Italian police in the sea near Sicily Island [Image source=AP Yonhap News]

About 70 cocaine packages were connected by a net, and the net was equipped with a tracking device.

The police believe this to be the work of drug dealers. It is explained that the drug packages were thrown into the sea and abandoned, with tracking devices attached to retrieve them later.

Regarding this, the police stated, "This is the largest amount of drugs seized in Italy," and "The street value of the cocaine exceeds 400 million euros."

Meanwhile, Sicily is the stronghold of a major European mafia organization. The headquarters of the famous mafia group "Cosa Nostra," depicted in the movie "The Godfather," is also located on Sicily.

However, local Italian media speculate that the drug packages are more likely related to the '’Ndrangheta' than to Cosa Nostra.

The ’Ndrangheta is based not in Sicily but in Calabria on the Italian mainland. However, it is reported to be deeply involved in drug trafficking, controlling most of the cocaine flowing through various routes in Europe.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.