An international operation coordinated by Uruguay detected and seized in Montevideo a quantity of almost 50 kilograms of cocaine, which was hidden inside surfboards destined for Europe.

At the same time, three alleged drug traffickers were also arrested, the authorities in Montevideo announced yesterday Tuesday.

Uruguay, between Argentina and Brazil, has become in recent years a hub for the trafficking of cocaine originating from Colombia and Peru and destined for Europe, experts note.

“This operation is unprecedented in our country, because of its scope in terms of international cooperation,” said Uruguayan police director Jose Manuel Asabuya.

The operation and the “trick” of the policemen

It all started during a routine check, on May 23, by the Uruguayan police, on packages that were supposed to be picked up by a freight company and destined for abroad.

A specially trained dog stopped in front of a box containing six surfboards, weighing a total of 104 kg.

Caches filled with cocaine were later found in each of them.

Initially, 40.66 kilograms of cocaine, hidden in five boards, were seized. But the police decided to let the cocaine that was hidden in the sixth board go, to be a “controlled delivery” to its recipients, so that they could be arrested.

On June 7, Portuguese police arrested two Italians waiting for the boards in Lisbon, who arrived five days earlier after a stopover in Spain, and seized the remaining 9.3 kilograms of cocaine.

A third Italian, suspected of being involved with one of two other alleged drug traffickers in the shipment of the boards from Uruguay, has been arrested in Italy. The three suspects were remanded in custody.