Summary

The Dominican Republic seized a record 9.5 tonnes of cocaine, worth $250 million, in a banana shipment at Santo Domingo’s Caucedo port.

The drugs, shipped from Guatemala and destined for Belgium, mark the country’s largest drug bust, surpassing a 2006 seizure of 2.6 tonnes.

Authorities detained ten suspects and highlighted increasing trafficking activity through the Caribbean.

Analysts at InSight Crime warn the region is becoming a key smuggling route for cocaine to Europe, where demand has more than doubled since 2011, leveraging the Dominican Republic’s major transport hubs.

  • bangsnooter@lemmy.zip
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    6 days ago

    Apparent price of cocaine math:

    9.5tons × 2,000lbs = 19,000lbs

    $250mil ÷ 19,000lbs = $13,158 per lb

    $13,158 ÷ 16 = $822 per oz

    $822 ÷ 3 = $274 per teaspoon of cocaine

    “How much could a banana cost? $274 dollars?”