Last Thursday, Brazil’s Federal Police seized a ton of cocaine at the port of Itapoá in Santa Catarina, from a ship that was about to leave for Morocco, a global hub for drug trafficking, according to Brazilian media.
The drugs were concealed in a compartment on a ship intended for export. This operation was the result of maritime surveillance activities by the Special Maritime Police Group (GEPOM). The ship, flying the Liberian flag, was headed to Morocco as its final destination.
The seizure followed the detection of suspicious activity involving a second vessel transferring cargo to the ship, raising suspicions of illicit activities. These suspicions were confirmed by images captured at the port terminal, showing unusual movements. Brazilian Federal Police teams conducted a thorough inspection of the ship, which took over two days due to the vessel’s large size, until the drugs were located.
During the operation, five individuals from the Philippines and Montenegro were arrested. It is suspected that once the cocaine reached Morocco, it was intended for the European market.
Last month, Brazilian authorities thwarted another attempt to traffic 605 kilograms of cocaine for export through the port of Santos in Sao Paulo state. The drugs were hidden in a container carrying 13 tons of frozen açaí berries. The cocaine was meant to be first shipped to the port of Tanger Med in Morocco and then rerouted to Portugal.
Morocco is often mentioned in contexts involving drug and human trafficking to Europe. In April, Spanish authorities seized 25 tons of hashish worth €50 million, hidden in a truck from Morocco supposedly carrying melons to France. Just a month prior, Spain’s Civil Guard announced the seizure of over 4,400 kilos of hashish from Morocco at the port of Motril in Granada (south).
In its 2023 report, the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) expressed concern over the scale of illicit cannabis and other drug activities in Morocco, identifying it as a global hub for drug and kif trafficking.
