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.
In units of actual drugs: 9,500kg $250m
$263/gram Street price in Australia, maybe, but extremely overestimated. Assuming they cut it, likely closer to $150/g in the street upon distribution in Europe.