Seville: Spanish authorities have seized more than 1.2 tons of cocaine hidden in a shipment of coconuts in the southern province of Seville, Spanish police said Tuesday. Authorities intercepted 1,238 kilograms (2,729 pounds) of cocaine concealed at the back of a truck trailer and beneath pallets carrying coconuts, according to a statement. Two people were arrested on suspicion of drug trafficking.

According to Anadolu Agency, the operation began in December after investigators identified a company in Dos Hermanas, Seville, that they suspected was being used to bring drugs into Spain. Investigators later identified a suspicious shipping container and placed it under close surveillance.

Authorities moved to intercept the shipment just as the driver was preparing to deliver it to a warehouse. The shipment was intercepted as it was being received, while searches of two properties in Seville province led to the seizure of cash and electronic devices deemed to have significant evidentiary value. The investigation remains open, and authorities said further arrests are possible.

Spain is a major entry point for cocaine into the EU, particularly for shipments arriving from Latin America. Spanish authorities seized 124 tons of cocaine in 2024, accounting for 37% of all cocaine seized across the EU that year, according to the European Union Drugs Agency's latest European Drug Report. Spain, France, and Belgium together accounted for 67% of the 330 tons seized across the bloc in 2024.

While the overall quantity of cocaine seized declined from the previous year, the number of seizures increased, with the EU agency pointing to criminal groups' growing use of smaller, fragmented shipments to make detection more difficult.