A “significant amount” of cocaine and other drugs washed up on beaches in France in recent weeks. It has become a daily affair and has spread over a length of nearly 310 miles along the Atlantic coast. The police of the city of Rennes said the purity of the cocaine is high and hence, dangerous. Those who come across such packages must not touch them but inform the police. People who live near the sea know that suspicious packages of drugs and other contraband keep washing up on the beaches from time to time. These could have been from ships or boats that sunk or goods thrown overboard intentionally by those who wanted to evade detection and the police.
The Guardian elaborates on the finding. Quoting the prosecutor’s office, it says a consignment weighing nearly 30 lbs turned up on Pornic beach. Until now, a total of more than 1675lbs (760 kg) of drug parcels have washed up on the beaches. The goods are wrapped in plastic to protect them. In the opinion of Philippe Astruc, the Rennes public prosecutor, the contents of the packages could be cocaine from South America. He also revealed that it was in its purest form and hence posed a major health risk.
French prosecutors said Sunday that they had opened an investigation after finding a "significant amount" of cocaine and other drugs on beaches all along the Atlantic coast since last monthhttps://t.co/lDCrTN44aN pic.twitter.com/kFJWkRfoPw
— AFP news agency (@AFP) November 10, 2019
Police launched an investigation
The nature of its contents is fraught with danger and those who happen to see them must maintain a distance and avoid any contact with them.
It is believed to be cocaine in its purest form and is a danger to health. Police are investigating and trying to establish whether it was the result of an accident to the boat of drug traffickers or an intentional act to jettison its cargo to avoid falling into the hands of the law. Those who indulge in drug trafficking are ruthless and keep innovating to avoid clashing with the law.
150kg of ‘diamond’ cocaine washes up on French beaches, locals urged against ‘treasure hunting’ https://t.co/k0cf4SqCtc pic.twitter.com/qZVzdScCju
— RT (@RT_com) November 10, 2019
The Guardian said people who see such packages on the beach should not touch them or pick them up because, if they do, they would face legal issues with a possible prison term for handling the drugs.
French police and customs officers are always on the lookout for consignments of drugs. They regularly investigate entry of the contraband into the country by sea routes.
Similar packages washed up in Florida
According to Gulf News, the discovery of cocaine and other drugs on beaches along the Atlantic coast in France has the police investigating the possible source. Some of the packages had specific markings "Diamante" or "Brillante." Similar markings were visible on packages that had washed up in Florida during Hurricane Dorian in September. It could be a coincidence or could be from the same source. Police are investigating the happenings. The news appeared in a local newspaper that said two people discovered two packages on the beach at Arcachon, southwest of Bordeaux. The packages held 6.6 pounds of cocaine. It seems packages had been washing up on the beaches regularly over the last month.