Liberian authorities have seized cocaine worth more than $370 million in what they describe as the country’s largest-ever drug bust.
The raid, carried out on Tuesday at a suspected illegal storage facility in Duazon, about 20km east of Monrovia, led to the arrest of several suspects, including two foreigners and several Liberians.
Police chief Gregory Coleman said forensic tests confirmed the seized substance was high-grade cocaine and that the operation followed more than 18 months of surveillance into drug-trafficking networks that resurfaced between 2018 and 2023.
Authorities are yet to determine the drugs’ origin or intended destination. One foreign suspect was found carrying Spanish and Colombian passports, while the other held a Serbian passport.
The operation comes weeks after security officials intercepted nearly 200 compressed blocks of cocaine at Roberts International Airport last month in cargo falsely declared as food seasoning and textiles. That seizure prompted President Joseph Boakai to order a joint investigation, with several suspects since charged and international arrest warrants issued for others.
West Africa remains a major transit hub for cocaine trafficked from South America to Europe. According to the Global Initiative Against Transnational Organized Crime, about 30% of cocaine destined for Europe now passes through the region, with seizures rising steadily since 2019 to approximately 30 tonnes in 2025.
Liberia previously recorded a major cocaine seizure in 2022, when 520kg of the drug was intercepted at Monrovia’s seaport.
Since taking office in 2024, President Boakai has repeatedly reshuffled the leadership of the country’s drug enforcement Agency amid mounting pressure to combat drug trafficking.