Overview
- French customs stopped a Portugal-to-Netherlands lorry at a motorway toll in Vienne, a town south of Lyon.
- Officers inspected 26 large sacks of potting soil, noticed irregularities in the rear bags, and emptied the entire load.
- Using an excavator to sift the soil, they uncovered 998 cocaine packages weighing over 1.1 tonnes and valued at about €75.5 million.
- The driver and two passengers were arrested and brought before an examining magistrate as the inquiry continues.
- Authorities say the case reflects growing cocaine flows entering Europe via Portugal, Spain, and France, a surge some investigators call a “white tsunami.”