Greatest Number of Drug Seizures in 8 Years

HAVANA TIMES — The Cuban government seized 1,644 kilograms of drugs during the first half of 2012, the highest figure in the last eight years, reported by the island’s Ministry of Interior last week.

Most of the drugs were found in packages that reached Cuban shores after being thrown overboard by traffickers or were dropped from aircraft flying to the north of Cuba to be picked up by boats from the US.

Within Cuban airports themselves, 25 attempts at drug trafficking were thwarted during this same period. These resulted in the seizure of 58 pounds of drugs issuing from the United States, Colombia, Mexico, Peru and Costa Rica. These substances were found hidden in shoes, candles, grooming items, food, bicycles and in the digestive tracts of people who had ingested them.