Guinea-Bissau’s police have seized 2.63 tons of cocaine discovered aboard an airplane that arrived from Venezuela in the nation’s capital, Bissau, according to a statement by the country’s judicial police.
The large drug haul, consisting of 78 bales of cocaine, was found on a Gulfstream IV aircraft during a raid on Saturday afternoon at Osvaldo Vieira International Airport. The aircraft’s five-member crew, including the pilot, was arrested. Those detained include two Mexican nationals and citizens of Colombia, Ecuador, and Brazil.
The suspects are set to appear before a regional court on Monday for interrogation, as per the official police statement.
The raid, dubbed “Operation Landing,” was conducted in collaboration with the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) and the Maritime Analysis and Operations Centre-Narcotics (MAOC-N).
West Africa is a known transit hub for drug traffickers, who frequently use the region to transport cocaine from South America to Europe. This recent seizure marks one of the largest drug busts in the region in recent years.
According to the 2024 U.N. World Drug Report, cocaine remains one of the most widely used drugs globally, with 23 million users.
