Approx. 12 kg of cocaine found in ship container in St. Petersburg

MOSCOW. June 27 (Interfax-AVN) - About twelve kilograms of cocaine were found in a container onboard the ship which had arrived in St. Petersburg from New Orleans via Rotterdam, a source in the law enforcement authorities told Interfax.

The police and customs searched the St. Petersburg seaport's container terminal on June 25 within the framework of a criminal investigation launched earlier under article 229.1 of the Russian Criminal Code (drug contraband), he said.

Twelve kilograms of cocaine were stashed in cavities of a refrigerated container onboard the ship traveling along the New Orleans - Rotterdam - St. Petersburg route. The drugs were impounded, the source said.

The owner of the drugs has yet to be identified, he said.