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The largest quantity of heroin seized in Europe was transported by the "NOOR ONE" tanker, at the port of Eleusina.

The quantity seized on Saturday night by the coast guard special forces, together with the quantity seized last week in warehouses in Koropi, are the biggest quantity of heroin seized in Europe, said today the Minister of Naval Affairs Miltiadis Varvitsiotis.

The drugs were hidden on the "NOOR ONE" tanker in a very careful and well planned way, which made finding them so difficult, even with the aid of trained dogs, said a senior representative of the Coast Guard.

The investigation of the ship began due to the illegal fuel found there, which amounted to 18 tons, and for which no documentation was presented.

The first quantity of 1 ton and 133 grams was seized during an operation of the Coast Guard with the American Drug Enforcement Administration, DEA, in a warehouse in Koropi and in a villa in Filothei. For that amount, five Turks and three Greeks had already been arrested.

The second quantity of 986 kilograms and 600 grams was found last night in the old warehouses of a poultry company located in Koropi, guarded by Iranian citizens.

The ship transporting the drugs in Greece at the end of April was in Sarsa port of the United Arab Emirates, and in early May, while in international waters near Oman, its "goods" were loaded. Afterwards, the captain reported a mechanical failure and on June 7, the ship moored at the port of Eleusina.

According to the Coast Guard, the crew consisted of 11 Indian citizens who were detained. 3 more people were arrested, including 2 Greeks: one woman and one man. The woman, aged 53, is a representative of the company-owner, and the man seems to have been assisting the heroin transportation to the villa in Filothei.

While information on the case was being released, Minister Varvitsiotis thanked the Coast Guard for yesterday's successful operation as well as the Directorate of Fighting Drugs and Smuggling, the port authorities of Piraeus and the special forces.

It was also noted that a week ago, in relation to this case, also arrested were the ship owner Efthmios Yanusakis, his ex-wife and her current partner as well as 6 more people involved.