Limerick cocaine bust has Canadian connect

A bulker arriving in Ireland from Canada contained at least 300 kg of cocaine. The Verila arrived in the Irish port of Foynes near the city of Limerick last week. Owned by Bulgaria’s Navigation Maritime Bulgare (Navibulgar), the ship was reported to be carrying a load of grain from Canada. The ship departed Montreal on December 9. A search returned bundles of cocaine wrapped with life preservers as flotation devices and GPS beacons. Cops suspect the cocaine was to be tossed overboard to be recovered by a smaller boat.

The Verila came from Brazil and made a stop in Hamilton. Here.

This is the second major seizure the Irish have made in recent months. In September, another bulker, the Mathew, was found with over 2,000 kg of cocaine. The vessel was seized and a prosecution is ongoing in that case.