The organized crime syndicate controlled around one third of the cocaine trade in the bloc’s countries, according to Europol
A sprawling cocaine “super cartel” has been taken down in the EU in a series of coordinated law enforcement raids, Europol announced on Monday. The raids, dubbed ‘Operation Desert Light’, were carried out in Spain, France, Belgium, the Netherlands, and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) between November 8 and 19.
The operation, which involved law enforcement agencies of the respective nations, the US Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) and Europol itself, was the culmination of multiple parallel investigations, the international agency noted.
“A total of 49 suspects have been arrested during the course of this investigation. The drugpins considered as high-value targets by Europol had come together to form what was known as a ‘super cartel’,” the agency said.
Europol has released a short video of the operation,…