Cyprus served as a transit point for ketamine within the Hamburg-Limassol-Haifa triangle.
“We consider it impossible that 400 kilograms of ketamine were intended for the Cypriot market.” Christos Andreou, Director of YKAN
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The massive quantity of 390 kilograms of ketamine seized following the dismantling of the international drug trafficking ring in Limassol is equivalent to 790,000 doses and is the largest quantity ever seized in Cyprus to date.
The network’s route
The trafficking network smuggled the drugs inside shipping containers from Germany to the port of Limassol. The final destination was Israel, where most of the drugs were shipped via luxury yachts from the Limassol and Larnaca marinas, while the remainder was distributed on the Cypriot market.
The massive quantity was discovered in two separate shipments. The first shipment, weighing 126 kilograms, was found last Saturday at two residences in Moutagiaka and Ypsona, and based on an examination of documents found at the two homes, YKAN investigators were led on Monday morning to a customs warehouse near the Port of Limassol, where, carefully camouflaged inside paint barrels, another 264 kilograms of ketamine.
“They were obviously about to be picked up. These shipments arrived as hygiene products; no one suspected what they contained.” Christos Andreou, YKAN Commander
All the rage in Israel
Ketamine is used as a key ingredient in the production of so-called “dosa” or “pink cocaine,” a drug that is widespread in Israel’s nightlife scene. Despite its name, it is not cocaine, but a mixture of psychoactive substances, often including ketamine, MDMA, caffeine, and other substances.
“Some people see it as an out-of-body experience, where I see myself stepping out of my body.” Nicholas Dietis, Assistant Professor of Pharmacology at the University of Cyprus
Investigators are attempting to map the entire route of the shipments, as well as the individuals involved at each stage. The YKAN estimates that the masterminds of the ring—at least in Cyprus—are the Israeli couple currently in custody, aged 50 and 53, while the other couple arrested in connection with the case—aged 49 and 42 and from Palestine—are believed to have acted as couriers.
Watch the report by Christoforos Nestoros
