CODERN receives container scanner to combat international drug trafficking

Last Thursday, September 8, Companhia Docas do Rio Grande do Norte (CODERN) received a container scanner rented by companies operating at the terminal. Already being installed, the equipment aims to increase the security of the port operation and prevent international drug trafficking.

“Talks and negotiations with public agents (Federal Police, Internal Revenue Service, the National Health Surveillance Agency ANVISA, and the Ministry of Agriculture), shipowners (CMA CGM), and port operators (Progeco) operating in the port have been underway since 2019 in order to increase security”, stated CODERN.

According to the company, the equipment was rented through a partnership between the owner CMA CGM, the port operator Progeco, and fruit growers in the state, the main customers of the terminal, at a cost of R$ 350,000 to R$ 400,000 per month. The contract runs until September 2021. The company says it will try to have its own equipment by then.

From the start of the scanner’s operation, CODERN states that the Internal Revenue Service will begin to directly receive the images generated by the equipment. Thus, drugs that may be in the cargo may be detected.

International drug trafficking

Discussions about the need for the scanner intensified after the Federal Police and the Internal Revenue Service seized cocaine inside several containers of fruit that were going to Europe. In 2019, the Federal Police stated that Natal, and specifically, the terminal, had become a starting point for drugs destined for the Netherlands.

After an operation that seized about 3.3 tons of cocaine in the port, the company CMA CGM – the only carrier of the fruits produced in the state destined for Europe – temporarily suspended travel from the Port of Natal and demanded urgent security measures so they could continue working in the state.

Even after operations resumed, the terminal continued to be used by criminals to carry out international drug trafficking. On October 3, the Federal Police arrested four people red-handed and seized more than 238 kilos of cocaine arriving at the terminal in a truck to be placed inside a container full of fruit.

Record movement in September

Also at the Port of Natal, CODERN announced that in September, the site broke its cargo handling record, reaching the historic mark of 107,643 tons, compared to a monthly average of around 35 to 40 thousand tons.

Cargo Handling at the Port of Natal | Jan 2017 to Aug 2020 | TEU

Graph source: DataLiner (To request a Dataliner demo click here)

Report source: G1

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