Cocaine haul detected on sugar importer's tip off

The 200 kilos of cocaine was detected yesterday by the Police Narcotics Bureau (PNB) when checking the containers after obtaining a court order based on the information provided by the sugar importer, Police said.

The PNB officers with the assistance of the Customs officers checked the thirteen suspicious containers which were held at the Rank Container Terminal (RCT) in Orugodawatte.

They said the importer had claimed that the containers had arrived later than the scheduled date and as such he was suspicious of the contents.

The Police said the Customs officers had earlier claimed that it was they who detected the haul of cocaine.

The Police denied the Customs claim that the sugar importer and his wharf clerk had been arrested.
Sugar Importers Association President Parakrama Abeysekera informed Daily Mirror that that the importer who imported this consignment of sugar, was the person who informed the PNB about his suspicions.

“The vessel MSC Julie-SS634R had left Brazil with fifty containers of sugar. It had been transshipped from Portugal on MSC Sabilo. At the point of transshipment which would have not taken more than 24 hours, would have not given sufficient time for the receivers to remove the cocaine from the container. Several thousand container loads of sugar arrive from Brazil,” he said.

Meanwhile, he said the sugar importers had unanimously decided to stop all such imports from Brazil. (Chaturanga Pradeep)