New Zealand police on Wednesday said they had found 3.5 tons of cocaine floating in a remote part of the Pacific Ocean in the largest drug seizure in the country’s history. The New Zealand police had been investigating some suspicious movements of boats in the Pacific since December: they have not yet identified those responsible, but the size of the load has led to speculation that it belonged to an international trafficking organization.
The drug was near a buoy, where it was most likely to be picked up, but was intercepted by a navy vessel before that could happen. It was packed in 81 large packages that floated. According to New Zealand Police Commissioner Andrew Coster, 3.5 tonnes of cocaine is enough to satisfy the Australian market for about a year and the New Zealand market for 30 years.
