LISBON: Portugal’s Customs statics showed that around 32,848 kilos of hashish were apprehended in Portugal during 2014, 3,738 of cocaine, 35 kilos of heroin and 6,739 units of ecstasy, which was down from 14.633 in 2013.
It is not only drugs that are taken by police from traffickers, with 2014 seeing 2,450 mobile phones, 134 weapons, 15 boats, 297 cars and almost one million euros in cash being seized by the authorities.
According to the annual Homeland Security Report (RASI), cocaine from South America and hashish from Africa enters the country primarily by sea before being partly sold in the country then moved on to other parts of Europe.
Other drugs trafficked into Portugal include heroin and ecstasy, which comes from Spain and Holland, however the report highlights concerns regarding heroin from Brazil and the large amounts of hashish entering the country from Morocco and Spain.
The amount of hashish seized by authorities last year was four times higher than in 2013 but seizures of heroin and ecstasy were down according to the report which noted “significant changes” in the trends and use of drugs in the country.
