Morales Says Bolivia Seized Record 19 Tons of Cocaine

[Judi Lynn]

Morales Says Bolivia Seized Record 19 Tons of Cocaine
By Jonathan J. Levin

Sept. 16 (Bloomberg) -- Bolivian President Evo Morales said his country’s anti-drug forces seized 19 tons of cocaine this year through the first two weeks in September, beating a previous record of 11 tons for all of 2005.

Morales, who spoke to reporters today at the presidential palace in La Paz, said the confiscated drugs include cocaine base and cocaine hydrochloride, the powder form.

“The most important thing is that we’ve discovered sophisticated laboratories without the U.S. DEA,” Morales said, referring to the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration.

Morales expelled the U.S. anti-drug organization last November for allegedly meddling in the Andean nation’s internal affairs. Earlier that year, he declared U.S. ambassador Philip Goldberg “persona non grata,” and the two countries remain without high-level diplomatic relations.

The Bolivian government eradicated 5,000 hectares (12,355 acres) of coca, cocaine’s raw ingredient, in the first nine months of the year, said Morales, a former coca grower.

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