Colombian police have seized a 12 tonnes stash of cocaine worth over a third of a billion dollars in the largest drugs haul in the country’s history.
The drugs were found buried beneath four banana plantations in the north of the country, close to lucrative smuggling routes used to transport the white powder to the US.
Police said they also arrested four people during the operation, which is part of an offensive against the infamous Gulf Clan, a powerful drug trafficking gang.
President of Colombia Juan Manuel Santos said: “In Colombia, a kilo of cocaine is valued at $1,500 US dollars. In the United States market, the price goes up to $30,000.
“It means that this confiscation is valued at $360 million.”
The drugs are believed to have been stashed by Gulf Clan leader Dairo Úsuga, also known as Otoniel, whom Colombian authorities have been trying to capture for years.
The Gulf Clan emerged out of the ashes of the various right-wing paramilitary groups that demobilized in 2006 following a government peace deal.
Colombia says it has arrested more than 1,500 Gulf Clan members so far this year and that its second-in-command has been killed.
