SBU exposes international drug syndicate: cocaine shipment worth nearly UAH 70 mln seized

Ukraine's Security Service (SBU) has dismantled an international drug syndicate, seizing the largest cocaine shipment since the onset of the full-scale war, valued at approximately UAH 70 million. The criminal organization was responsible for smuggling hard drugs from southern Europe into Ukraine, generating monthly earnings of UAH 15-20 million.

Ten members of the syndicate were simultaneously apprehended in Kyiv, Dnipropetrovsk, and Lviv regions, all involved in the wholesale distribution of cocaine, ecstasy, and other psychotropic substances imported from abroad. The group's coordinator in Ukraine was a resident of Kyiv, who recruited 'workers' through specialized online forums to sell drugs in various regions of Ukraine in exchange for payment.

Initial searches resulted in the seizure of about 2 kg of cocaine and other banned substances from the suspects, with an additional 8 kg later found in their hideouts. The total value of the seized narcotics amounts to around UAH 70 million. All ten detainees have been notified of suspicion under Ukraine's Criminal Code, Part 3, Article 307, which pertains to illegal production, manufacturing, acquisition, storage, transportation, shipment, or sale of narcotic drugs, psychotropic substances, or their analogues by an organized group.

The SBU has also identified three Ukrainian nationals residing in Spain who played a role in organizing the drug-trafficking network, with extradition proceedings currently underway. The operation was conducted under the procedural guidance of the Dnipro district prosecutor's office in Kyiv.