More than 28kg of cocaine found on foreign-registered vessel transiting Singapore

SINGAPORE: More than 28kg of cocaine was found on board a foreign-registered vessel transiting through Singapore's waters.The police said in a news release on Tuesday (Aug 25) that officers from the Police Coast Guard were alerted on Aug 21 to suspicious packages on the vessel. Acting on the information, they boarded and searched the vessel. They discovered two packages believed to contain controlled drugs hidden in sea chest strainers, which filter debris from seawater taken into the vessel.The Central Narcotics Bureau (CNB) took over the case and later established that the two packages contained more than 28kg of cocaine, the police said.Early investigations showed that the drugs were not meant for the Singapore market, they added.CNA has contacted CNB for more information on the vessel's country of registration and its ongoing investigations.Under Singapore's Misuse of Drugs Act, importing or exporting more than 30g of cocaine carries the mandatory death penalty.