Record drug deal: more than a tonne of hashish and 126kg of cannabis herb seized in Luxembourg

The Luxembourg Administration of Customs and Excise reported the largest drug seizure in recent years: a roadside check resulted in a truck being stopped with 1,065 kilograms of hashish and 126 kilograms of marijuana.

According to the agency, the arrest took place last week, but the details only became known on Monday. The lorry driver, a 35-year-old man, was arrested on the orders of the Luxembourg prosecutor's office and presented before an investigating judge before being taken into custody. The investigation is ongoing.

The amount of drugs seized is staggering: 403 kg of hashish and 73 kg of cannabis herb were seized in Luxembourg in the whole of 2023. This was already then considered a record compared to previous years: only 347kg of both substances together were seized in the entire period from 2020 to 2022. The new find is more than three times the annual figure from last year, and this is only one operation.

These figures indicate not only an increase in the volume of shipments, but also a possible change in drug trafficking routes, in which Luxembourg is likely to become an increasingly active transit hub.

Despite its compact size, Luxembourg is a strategically important point on the map of Europe. Its geographical position - between France, Germany and Belgium - makes the country a convenient corridor for the illegal movement of goods. Lorries transiting Luxembourg often take advantage of its relatively free movement within the Schengen area.

This case confirms that roadside controls remain an essential tool in the fight against drug trafficking. However, it also emphasises how vulnerable logistics routes remain, even in prosperous countries.