Borkum vacationer discovers cocaine bags on the beach
In April, a tourist on the North Sea island of Borkum discovered several suspicious bags on the beach and alerted the police. The authorities then initiated investigations. The prosecutor's office in Aurich has now made its first statement regarding the contents of the bags.
A large quantity of drugs has been dumped into the North Sea on the eastern Frisian island of Borkum. A tourist had already discovered several suspicious bags bound together with a life vest on the beach in April and alerted the police. The prosecutor's office in Aurich confirmed that a total of approximately one ton of cocaine was found in the bags. This is one of the largest known drug finds at the Lower Saxony North Sea coast in recent years.
The investigations have been taken over by the Federal Criminal Police Office, according to a spokesperson for the Aurich prosecutor's office, responding to an inquiry from the German Press Agency. "Investigations are being conducted in all directions." The spokesperson declined to make further statements. The origin of the packages, why they ended up on the beach, and whether there could be suspects in the investigation remained open.
The discovery of the bags had already become known through media reports in April. However, the investigating authorities had kept quiet about whether drugs were actually in the packages. NDR and "Nordwest-Zeitung" reported that the investigators initially followed a possible connection to the arrest of two suspected drug smugglers in March on a cutter off Cuxhaven. This suspicion was not confirmed by the investigators.
In the past few years, drugs have been found in bags at the North Frisian coast in large quantities. For example, workers discovered 25 kilograms of cocaine at a dike embankment in the Aurich district in 2021. On the island of Baltrum, a similar amount of drugs was found shortly beforehand. In the spring of 2017, cocaine packets were also found on island shores.
The origin of the cocaine in these bags remained unclear. Previous statements from the investigating authorities suggested that drug-filled containers were thrown overboard from large ships and later retrieved by smaller boats and brought to shore. The bags could have been lost in the process.
The drugs found in the bags are reportedly cocaine, making this a significant international incident. The large quantity of cocaine, estimated to be around one ton, suggests a major international drugs operation.
