Cocaine

Police on Friday evacuated a building on a central Athens street which, they said, had become a hangout for drug users and dealers.

Six people - five foreign nationals and a Greek woman - were arrested, while municipal cleaning crews removed 35 tons of garbage from the building on Liosion Street.

Greek law enforcement officials are planning to visit Serbia in the immediate future to discuss the murder of Montenegrins Igor Dedovic and Stevan Stamatovic, who were gunned down at a taverna in the seaside resort of Vari in Attica last Sunday.

Spanish law enforcement has seized a submarine that was loaded with more than 2 tonnes of cocaine, according to the El Pais.

Law enforcement officers have detained at least two people. The submarine was discovered in the waters of Galicia. It is believed that the submarine has arrived from Colombia. There are no other details so far.

More than one tonne of cocaine in plastic packages of as yet unknown origin have been collected in recent weeks from the Atlantic coast of France, the French press reported.

Ten people were arrested on drug possession charges during a raid on a nightclub in the Gazi district of Athens, police said on Monday.
The raid, which took place early on Sunday morning, led to the seizure of 12.6 grams of cannabis, 3.5 grams of cocaine, 1.7 grams of heroin, 3.2 grams of MDMA and at least 20 pills.

Judging by a spate of drugs busts over the past 12 months, Balkan crime gangs are major players in the trafficking of heroin, cocaine, marijuana and synthetic drugs around the world.

Anti-narcotics officers announced Thursday they arrested three people and seized 1905 kilos of cocaine in a major drug bust in Athens.

The ring members were identified as one Croatian and two Albanian nationals.

A sweep of the Aghios Stefanos prison near Patra, western Greece, has turned up quantities of drugs as well as 11 makeshift knives and five cellphones, which are forbidden in penitentiaries.

The inspection began late on Tuesday night and was completed in the early hours of yesterday morning.

Brazil is becoming a growing exporter, ahead of Colombia's largest producer. This became clear from announced customs data, BGNES reported.

So far this year, by September 25, authorities have seized 40.7 tonnes of cocaine at the Belgian port of Antwerp, the main entry point for drugs. Quarter of the seized drugs, 26 percent, came from Brazil, according to Belgian Customs Services.

Customs enforcement team in Turkey have seized 13.29 kilograms (29.29 pounds) of cocaine in an operation in Istanbul airport, the Trade Ministry said on Sept. 21.