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Europol Leads Largest-Ever Takedown of European Synthetic Drug Network

Investigators say the group repackaged legally imported precursors from China and India to funnel them to illicit labs.

Overview

  • Coordinated raids across Belgium, the Czech Republic, Germany, the Netherlands, Poland and Spain dismantled 24 industrial-scale labs.
  • Authorities seized about 1,000 tonnes of chemical precursors and more than 9.3 tonnes of finished narcotics.
  • Polish prosecutors reported over 100 arrests, including two suspected ringleaders identified as Polish nationals.
  • Poland served as the logistical hub for a supply chain that redistributed the chemicals to labs across the European Union.
  • Europol framed the action as a supply-chain choke strategy, with investigators also seizing over 120,000 liters of toxic waste and pursuing additional targets.