Freight train used to smuggle cocaine to Italy: Three Dutch men caught

Three men from Bergen op Zoom were arrested at the Lage Zwaluwe train station last week for trying to smuggle 24 kilograms of cocaine out of the country, the police said in a statement on Tuesday. They are also suspected of money laundering. The cocaine was found in suitcases hidden on a freight train headed for Milan, Italy.

Officers decided to check out the train on May 23rd based on tips about a suspicious situation. Witnesses saw three men hiding several suitcases beneath a wagon of a freight train. The train had just arrived from Moerdijk and was heading towards Milan. On the train the police found a number of suitcases containing a total of 24 kilos of cocaine.

At about the same time, the police saw the men trying to leave the station in a car. The suspects ignored the police's orders to stop, but were eventually arrested after a short chase. In the car officers found 24 thousand euros in cash.

Both cash and cocaine were confiscated.

The suspects, aged 24, 27 and 30 years old, were remanded into custody for 14 days on Friday.