Cocaine worth 2.3 billion dollars offloaded in US after biggest bust ever

MIAMI, Nov 5 (AFP) - More than 34 tonnes (75,000 pounds) of cocaine, with a street value of 2.3 billion dollars were offloaded from a US Navy frigate in Florida Friday following five different busts at sea, authorities said.
The illegal drugs included close to 14 tonnes (30,000 pounds) seized on September 17 from a fishing vessel near the Galapagos islands in what authorities termed the biggest cocaine bust ever.
The total shipment of 34 tonnes came from five loads seized from different vessels between August 31 and September 26, the US Coast Guard said.
The cocaine was offloaded in Key West, Florida, from the USS Curts, a US Navy warship often deployed in counter-narcotics operations.
Several federal and state agencies cooperated in what was dubbed "Operation Panama Express", including the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and the Coast Guard.
A total of 31 people were detained during the operation.
The seizures brought the total cocaine seized at sea during the fiscal year ending September 30 to 110 tonnes (240,519 pounds), worth approximately 7.7 billion, the Coast Guard said in a statement.

11/05/2004 22:38 GMT - AFP