LIMA, Aug. 27 (UPI) -- Police in Peru have seized 3.3 tons of cocaine that was disguised as a coal shipment destined for Europe.
The discovery of the cocaine followed a six-week surveillance operation that was coordinated with the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration.
The 3.3 tons of cocaine had been concealed inside coal the size of soccer balls and hidden in a house in rural Huanchaco, approximately 340 miles north of Lima.
Interior Minister Daniel Urresti said the shipment was bound for Belgium and Spain.
Police arrested nine people suspected of working for a Mexican drug cartel, including two Mexican and seven Peruvian nationals.
The 3.3 tons of cocaine was largest amount seized this year, said counternarcotics police chief Vicente Romero.
