More than 3,200 Illicit Drug Packages Seized

1,600 packages of what is presumed to be cocaine, were found hidden in two containers by Panama authorities on Wednesday April 10 destined for a port in Belgium.  In another drug bust, 1,512 packages of drugs were found in the port of Manzanillo, located in the Caribbean province of Colón, inside a container that was destined for the Belgian port of Antwerp.  Also in a Panamanian port, 90 packages of illicit substances in a container were seized. Totals as of mid-March, Panama authorities had seized at least 24 tons of drugs, while in all of 2023 that figure rose to 119.2 tons, the vast majority of which was cocaine.  In 2022, Panama seized a historic amount of 138.41 tons of drugs, of which 108.82 were cocaine, according to official figures.  Panama is used as a bridge for drugs produced in South America and whose main destination is the United States, the largest consumer of cocaine in the world, and also Europe.