Paraguay police finds 2.3 tons of cocaine hidden at private port

Villeta, Paraguay - Authorities in Paraguay have seized a record 2.3 tons of cocaine hidden in a container at a port near Asunción.

Some of the cocaine packages were stacked up at a press event.
Some of the cocaine packages were stacked up at a press event.  © Screenshot/Twitter/MaritoAbdo

The police found the drugs among a charcoal shipment at a private port in the city of Villeta.

President Mario Abdo Benítez shared the news on Twitter, calling the confiscation a "big blow to the drug trade." 

Worth around $500 million, the drug seizure was the largest to date in the country, the Paraguayan newspaper Hoy reported.

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The shipment was apparently destined for Israel with stops scheduled in Buenos Aires, Argentina, and Antwerp, Belgium, Interior Minister Euclides Acevedo said.

Cristian César Turrini Ayala, a former public TV manager and allegedly the owner of the cargo, has been temporarily detained. 

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Paraguay has long been a hub for criminal organizations operating in the drug business. Along with neighbors Brazil and Argentina, it is part of a nexus of busy trade and smuggling routes.

Cover photo: Screenshot/Twitter/MaritoAbdo

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