French authorities have seized nearly 3.9 tonnes of cocaine, worth about €225 million, from a container of plastic waste that arrived from Ghana.
The cocaine was found at the port of Dunkirk after French Customs officers inspected the container. French prosecutors have opened an investigation into the shipment and the network behind it.
The case comes as Customs authorities across the world face growing pressure to detect illicit cargo moving through legitimate trade.
For Ghana, it also raises questions about how technology, data and intelligence can be used to strengthen Customs controls across the trade and transit chain.
Those were among the issues Kenneth Agyei-Duah shared with The High Street Journal in March in a piece on modernising Customs operations.
At the time, Agyei-Duah pointed to the growing role of intelligence, data and technology in helping Customs authorities identify risks and improve enforcement.
Ghana’s own Customs authorities have since dealt with cases that show the scale of the challenge.
Earlier this year, the Ghana Revenue Authority intercepted 18 truckloads of transit cargo and uncovered documentation fraud, under-declaration, tariff misclassification and possible identity fraud.
The investigation also identified 44 previous transit declarations linked to the same consignee.
The GRA has also been expanding its use of technology. Its Publican AI tool is being used to analyse trade documents, historical Customs records and other information to help officers identify potential valuation, classification and compliance risks.
The Ministry of Finance has introduced additional measures aimed at strengthening border controls and protecting government revenue.
The bigger question is how these different sources of information can work together.
Customs authorities have to make decisions before cargo arrives, during examination, at the point of exit and entry, and as goods move through the country under transit arrangements.
Being able to connect information across those stages can help officers identify unusual transactions, cargo movements and other risks that may not be obvious from a single declaration.
Technology is not a replacement for Customs officers. It can, however, give them more information to work with and help direct attention towards higher-risk shipments.
The Dunkirk seizure involved a container moving through an international supply chain. For Customs authorities, cases like this show why detecting risk cannot depend only on what is found when a container is physically opened.
The recent seizure also shows why the issues Kenneth Agyei-Duah raised in the piece THSJ published in March are still worth considering.
Six months later, the conversation around technology, intelligence and modern Customs operations remains relevant.
