cocaine

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US Hits 2 More Alleged Drug Vessels, This Time in Pacific

Tuesday night strike occurred off Colombia, followed by Wednesday strike also in the Pacific

(Newser) - Shortly after launching its eighth strike since last month on an alleged drug vessel, the US carried out its ninth, once again in the Pacific Ocean. The strike came Wednesday and left three people dead, bringing the death toll for all the strikes to 37, the AP reports. "Just...

After Ecuador Travelers Vanish, Cops Find a Horrifying Scene

8 bodies discovered in Buena Fe shortly after deadly attack on soccer game in Guayaquil

(Newser) - A pair of violent attacks in Ecuador has left 14 people dead, some showing signs of torture, and 17 wounded. The first incident took place late Sunday in Guayaquil, Ecuador's largest city, where gunmen opened fire on a neighborhood soccer game, per CBS News . Police say the attack, attributed...

Police: Narco-Sub Crew Tried to Pass as Pilgrims

Spanish police seize 4 tons of cocaine and arrest 14 suspects

(Newser) - Three men who claimed to be pilgrims walking Spain's Camino de Santiago—and who happened to be soaking wet—have been arrested and accused of carrying out a very different lengthy journey. Spanish police allege the men piloted a semi-submersible vessel packed with roughly 4 tons of cocaine...

He Was a Star at Busting Drug Traffickers, Then Became One

The Assembly looks at how police officer Freddie Huff used his skills to become a drug trafficker

(Newser) - Freddie Wayne Huff was once a model cop, hailed as a "superstar" for his knack at sniffing out drug smugglers on North Carolina highways—a reputation that brought millions in cash seizures and made him a DEA-certified instructor. But Huff's career crashed in 2014 when he was...

US Appetite for Cocaine Powers Rise of Cartel Boss

'El Mencho' is now Mexico's most powerful drug lord

(Newser) - As cocaine use surges in the US, Nemesio "Mencho" Oseguera, leader of Mexico's Jalisco New Generation Cartel, has emerged as the most powerful drug lord in the country, and possibly the world. Operating from a fortified hideout in the Sierra Madre, Oseguera has capitalized on two trends:...

If You Misplaced 1.4 Tons of Cocaine, El Salvador Has It

Country has nabbed $1B worth of the drug since 2024

(Newser) - El Salvador's navy hauled in a pricey catch this week: 1.4 tons of cocaine found floating in the Pacific, roughly 1,000 miles southwest of the country's coastline. President Nayib Bukele announced the seizure Tuesday, touting it as a blow against international drug networks, per CBS...

Cops Charge Grandpa With Putting Cocaine in Kids' Ice Cream

James Yokeley Jr., 66, allegedly then went to police to say pills had been found

(Newser) - A North Carolina community is struggling to come up with answers as to why a local elections official allegedly put cocaine and MDMA in his granddaughters' ice cream. James Yokeley Jr., 66, was arrested this month on felony counts of child abuse, drug possession, and drugging food or drink, WECT...

Authorities' 12-Hour Boat Chase Pays Off

Dominican Republic announces one of its largest cocaine seizures ever

(Newser) - Authorities in the Dominican Republic said Tuesday that they chased a boat for more than 12 hours and discovered 1.5 tons of cocaine aboard it. It's one of the Caribbean country's biggest seizures in history, said Carlos Devers, spokesperson for the nation's Anti-Drug Agency, per the...

Colombia Seizes Unmanned Starlink-Powered Narco Sub

Capable of carrying 1.5 tons of cocaine, sub was being tested and was empty

(Newser) - Drug traffickers are reportedly testing a new generation of unmanned "narco subs" in the Caribbean—equipped with cutting-edge satellite technology from Elon Musk's Starlink. Colombia's navy said Wednesday it has seized its first unmanned "narco sub" equipped with a Starlink satellite antenna off the country'...

FBI Reinvestigating White House Cocaine Find

Agency also examining leak of Dobbs decision, pipe bombs planted at party headquarters

(Newser) - The FBI will reinvestigate several incidents that have become "popular talking points on America's political right wing and among conspiracy theorists," per the Guardian . Writing Monday on X , Dan Bongino, the podcaster named deputy director of the FBI, said the agency would launch new investigations into the...

Off Coast of Portugal, a Massive Cocaine Bust on a Submersible

6.5 tons of the drug were confiscated, about a quarter of the haul over the course of 2024

(Newser) - Portuguese police have seized a semi-submersible vessel transporting 6.5 tons of cocaine destined for Europe, authorities in Lisbon said on Tuesday. Portuguese officials said they arrested five crew members after intercepting the vessel in the Atlantic Ocean, around 500 nautical miles south of the Azores, reports the AP . The...

Man's Cocaine Hiding Spot Doesn't Stay Hidden

The 'narco wig' didn't work as intended

(Newser) - Colombian police apprehended a 40-year-old man attempting to smuggle several bags of cocaine concealed beneath a meticulously attached toupee. Police said the suspect was detained at Cartagena's airport on Monday as he prepared to board a flight to Amsterdam. A scanner revealed the hidden cargo: 220 grams of cocaine...

On Bottom of the Sea, $15M in Cocaine

Discovery in Polish waters leads to 7 arrests

(Newser) - The discovery of some $15 million worth of cocaine at the bottom of the Baltic Sea has led to more cocaine and numerous arrests in Poland. Officers with Poland's Border Guard Maritime Unit initially discovered more than 220 pounds of the drug on the seabed in the Gulf of...

Colombia's President Calls for Legalizing Cocaine

He says it's 'no worse than whiskey'

(Newser) - Colombia's president is calling for the legalization of his country's most notorious export, arguing that cocaine isn't worse than whiskey. "Cocaine is illegal because it is made in Latin America, not because it is worse than whiskey," President Gustavo Petro said during a nationally televised...

Police Seize 7 Tons of Cocaine Buried Under Farm

Spain's Civil Guard unearthed the drugs in Coria del Rio after following 2 suspicious speedboats

(Newser) - A pair of vessels that attracted the wrong kind of attention in Spain last week led to a hefty drug bust on a nearby farm. Officials from the nation's Civil Guard say their investigation began Friday when two speedboats were spotted at the mouth of the Guadalquivir River, per...

Abandoned Backpacks Held $1.1M in Cocaine

The drugs are believed to have been smuggled into Washington state from Canada

(Newser) - Whoever left two large backpacks near the US-Canada border in Washington state was clearly uninterested in communing with nature. Inside the black bags discovered last week were 30 bricks of what turned out to be cocaine, weighing in at 78 pounds, per ABC News . US border patrol agents assigned to...

Notorious DC Drug Kingpin Dies in Federal Custody

Rayful Edmond was 60, died of unknown circumstances

(Newser) - Rayful Edmond, a drug kingpin once believed to control about a third of the cocaine trade in the nation's capital during the crack epidemic of the 1980s, has died in federal custody, the Bureau of Prisons confirmed Tuesday. Edmond, 60, was known at the height of his criminal empire...

'Operation RU Pharm' Nabs 7 in Rutgers Bust

7 have been arrested in what authorities say was a social media-run drug ring at New Jersey university

(Newser) - A monthslong probe into drug activity at New Jersey's Rutgers University has resulted in seven arrests, including that of a former student. Per a release from the office of Middlesex County Prosecutor Yolanda Ciccone, the undercover sting dubbed "Operation RU Pharm" unearthed "a closed and private social...

Australia's Biggest Cocaine Bust Was Very Easy

Boat breaks down with $500M worth of cocaine

(Newser) - Australian authorities scored the biggest cocaine bust in the nation's history over the weekend, seizing more than 2 tons of cocaine worth about $500 million, reports the BBC . The remarkable thing was how easy it was: Authorities say the smugglers' boat broke down off the coast of Queensland, per...

Massive Drug Bust Makes a Dent in Global Cocaine Supply

225 metric tons of cocaine seized during Colombia-led operation involving 62 countries

(Newser) - A massive anti-drug operation led by Colombia and involving 62 countries has uncovered a world record-setting amount of cocaine. The six-week haul, weighing in at 225 metric tons, is the largest ever for a single anti-narcotics operation, the Guardian reports. It represents about 8% of the total cocaine produced worldwide...

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