Liberian authorities have incinerated a staggering 4.2 metric tons of cocaine, $336 million worth, just days after announcing the country's largest-ever drug seizure and implicating high-ranking police officials in the illicit operation.
Investigators identified officers allegedly involved in escorting the cocaine after its arrival.
Police Inspector General Gregory O.W. Coleman confirmed the chief of highway patrol and head of the major crimes unit face charges, with a deputy police commander at the main airport also under suspicion.
The massive haul, Liberia's biggest drug bust in history, amounted to nearly 4 metric tons (8,818 pounds) with an estimated "street value" of around $317 million.
The operation also led to the detention of two foreign nationals, as investigators dismantled a sophisticated transnational trafficking network.
The Justice Ministry confirmed the cocaine was recovered during a raid on a property in Duazon, 17 miles (28 kilometers) from the capital, Monrovia.
A Serbian national and a dual Colombian-Spanish national were arrested at the scene and are currently undergoing questioning.
Liberia's police, drug enforcement agency, and other agencies also burned 237 kilograms (522 pounds) of cocaine, over $19 million worth, seized in June at Roberts International Airport.
Inspector General Coleman said the burning was intended to send "a clear message" that Liberia was no longer "a place of comfort" for drug traffickers.
The significant seizures underscore West Africa's emergence as a key transit route for cocaine trafficked from South America to Europe. Smugglers exploit the region's porous borders and weak enforcement.
According to the Global Initiative Against Transnational Organized Crime, at least 30% of cocaine destined for Europe now passes through the region. Local cocaine consumption, including crack cocaine, has also been rising.
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