CASE CRACK-ED: Cops Seize Men Who Trafficked Drugs Bizarrely Stamped With YouTube Logo

Police were baffled when they seized nearly 1,000 lb of cocaine bizarrely stamped with the YouTube logo after it was thrown from a plane in Uruguay.

Police officers stop a truck with 444 kilogrames of cocaine that had been thrown from a small plane in Tacuarembo, Uruguay, undated. The cocaine had the Youtube logo on it. ( Newsflash)

The 444-kilogramme (979-lb) haul had been thrown from a light aircraft over Tacuarembo in the north-central part of the country.

The drugs – spread across 14 packages – had then been picked up by a pickup truck and later transported on board a lorry carrying firewood.

But fast-working police were able to intercept the vehicle as it made its way along National Route 59.

They arrested the lorry driver, the pickup truck driver, and the individual who had allegedly told them where the drugs had landed.

Two of the three – aged 24 and 36 respectively – were charged with illegal trafficking of prohibited drugs and were remanded in custody for 120 days.

Picture shows a package of cocaine with the Youtube logo on it, undated. Police seized 444 kilogrames of cocaine that had been thrown from a small plane in Tacuarembo, Uruguay. (@santiagon1974/Newsflash)

And a 20-year-old man was given 16 years in prison – which under local law will translate to seven years in actual terms – for assisting in activities related to drug trafficking.

The countrywide police operation that saw the trio arrested is dubbed Operation Albania and is still underway.

It is unclear why the seized bricks of cocaine were stamped with the YouTube logo.

They were also marked with words in Arabic apparently to guarantee the product’s quality.

The Ministry of the Interior of Uruguay believes the haul is, indeed, of high quality and was destined to be sent to Europe.

crPicture shows a package of cocaine with the Youtube logo on it, undated. Police seized 444 kilogrames of cocaine that had been thrown from a small plane in Tacuarembo, Uruguay. (@santiagon1974/Newsflash)

Guillermo Maciel – Undersecretary of the Interior – said that had the drugs been destined for the national market, they could fetch up to USD 7 million (GBP 6.1 million).

He added that the origin of the shipment was unknown, saying: “It is part of the investigation that is being carried out in coordination with the intelligence services of the other Mercosur countries, specifically with Brazil, Argentina and Paraguay.”