Greek authorities seize record 1.1 tons of heroin

6/13/2014

ATHENS, Greece  — Greek authorities say they have seized a record 1.1 metric tons of heroin, worth more than 30 million euros ($40 million), near Athens and arrested 11 suspected traffickers.

A coastguard statement today said the operation, which followed a tip-off, was carried out in coordination with the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration.

The suspects, who were arrested late Thursday, were identified as six Greeks and five foreign nationals. The coastguard wouldn’t specify the nationalities further and it wasn’t immediately clear where the heroin had come from.

It said the drug ring had operated from a warehouse east of Athens and distributed the heroin in trucks to Greece and other European countries.

Merchant Marine Minister Miltiadis Varvitsiotis said it was the largest quantity of heroin ever seized in Greece.