Drug Brush Operation, Interpol Arrests 206 People, Confiscates IDR 26 Trillion Of Illegal Drugs

JAKARTA - Interpol arrested more than 200 people and confiscated illegal drugs and precursor chemicals worth USD 1.6 billion (equivalent to IDR 26.1 trillion).

The arrests and seizures were part of a two-month operation against narcotics trafficking in Europe, North America, and Africa.

An international police organization based in Lyon, France, said Operations of Hurricane Lionfish in April and May resulted in the confiscation of 615 tons of illegal drugs and chemicals.

In addition to arresting 206 people, 65 stolen cars were also confiscated, around 30,000 detonators and narco submarines'' self-made semi-submersible ships used to transport cocaine through South American waters and across the Atlantic in the Guyana forest.

The value of drugs seized in the two-month operation is higher than that of GDP in several countries, which clearly shows the scale of problems facing law enforcement, "said Jörgen Stock, chairman of an organization consisting of 196 countries reported by ABC News, Tuesday, July 30.

Statistical data from the World Bank shows that less than 20 of the smallest countries in the world have economic output of less than 1.6 billion US dollars.

Interpol said 505 tonnes of precursor chemicals, which were used for the manufacture of drugs and explosives, were confiscated.

The operation, which has been part of a series of Lionfish operations since 2013, was funded by the UK Ministry of Home Affairs and involved 31 other countries and international organizations.