Liberian authorities have seized nearly four tonnes of cocaine worth an estimated $317 million in what police described as the largest drug bust in the country’s history, following a raid on a suspected illegal storage facility near the capital, Monrovia.
Police said investigators recovered 3,971 kg (8,754 lb) of processed cocaine during Tuesday’s operation in Duazon, about 20 km (12 miles) east of Monrovia. Officers arrested several suspects, including two foreign nationals and several Liberians, although no formal charges have yet been announced.
Images released by the Liberia National Police showed dozens of sealed suitcases, boxes and black bags loaded onto a truck after the raid.
Police Inspector General Gregory Coleman said forensic tests confirmed the seized substance was cocaine and that the operation followed more than a year of surveillance targeting suspected drug-trafficking networks.
“Between 2018 and 2023, there was a resurgence of major trafficking and transiting in Liberia. Over the last one-and-a-half years, we’ve been surveilling them, and this is the result of that operation,” Coleman told the BBC.
Authorities initially estimated the haul’s value at $370 million, but investigators later revised the figure to more than $317 million.
Police said they are still investigating the origin of the shipment and its intended destination. Coleman said one of the arrested foreigners was carrying both Spanish and Colombian passports, while another held a Serbian passport.
Liberian Vice President Jeremiah Koung praised security agencies for the operation, pledging that anyone found responsible would “feel the full weight of the law, regardless of who you are.”
The seizure comes just weeks after authorities intercepted six cargo containers at Roberts International Airport that had been falsely declared as food seasoning and textiles. Investigators discovered nearly 200 compressed blocks of cocaine concealed inside the shipment, prompting President Joseph Boakai to order a joint investigation by the Liberia National Police and the Liberia Drug Enforcement Agency (LDEA).
Several suspects have since been charged, while international arrest warrants are being sought for others who remain at large.
West Africa has increasingly become a major transit hub for cocaine trafficked from South America to Europe, with international law enforcement agencies citing porous borders and weak enforcement in parts of the region.
The Global Initiative Against Transnational Organised Crime estimates that at least 30% of cocaine destined for Europe now passes through West Africa. The organization said cocaine seizures in the region have risen steadily since 2019, reaching around 30 tonnes in 2025, while local cocaine consumption has also increased.
The United Nations has also warned of the growing threat posed by increasingly sophisticated drug-trafficking networks operating across West Africa.
Liberia has recorded several major cocaine seizures in recent years, including a 520 kg shipment intercepted at the Port of Monrovia in 2022. Since taking office in 2024, President Boakai has repeatedly reshuffled the leadership of the country’s drug enforcement agency amid mounting pressure to combat narcotics trafficking.
