The black market price tag for the illegal cargo is a staggering 20 billion rubles ($240 million), according to the agency

Officials in Saint Petersburg have seized more than 1,500kg of cocaine hidden inside a shipment of bananas from Latin America aboard the 'Cool Emerald' cargo vessel, Russia's Federal Security Service (FSB) has said.

The black market price of the illegal cargo is estimated to be 20 billion rubles ($240 million), the agency said in a statement on Friday.

The "extra large" batch of cocaine was intercepted by FSB operatives and customs officials at the Great Port of Saint Petersburg in late August, following a tip from "foreign partners," the statement read.

The FSB has published footage showing numerous banana boxes containing packages of cocaine.

The packages numbered 1,500, weighing a total of 1,750kg, including 1,515kg of the narcotics, according to the statement.

A major drug smuggling investigation has been launched over the incident, the agency said, adding that investigators are continuing to establish who was involved in the criminal operation.

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This follows a July bust in which the FSB reportedly seized 820kg of cocaine. Late last year, an even bigger batch, weighing 1,200kg, was discovered at the port of Saint Petersburg.

The UN Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) warned in June that global cocaine use is soaring, outpacing all other narcotics. Its illegal production skyrocketed to an estimated 3,708 tons in 2023 - up nearly 34% from 2022, while consumption increased from an estimated 17 million people worldwide in 2013 to 25 million in 2023.

(RT.com)