In a unique attempt to dodge the police, smugglers disguised cocaine as potatoes and frozen chips in Colombia. Colombian Anti-Narcotics police seized 2,866 pounds or 1,3000 kg of cocaine on Tuesday, according to a Reuters report.

“The intelligence of the @PoliciaColombia dealt a resounding blow to drug trafficking by seizing a shipment of refrigerated and vacuum-sealed cocaine simulating yuccas and Creole potatoes. The shipment was destined for Spain. #EstrategiaEsmeralda,” read the Ministry of National Defence of Colombia’s tweet in Spanish.

The ministry also shared a clip showing a police officer extracting cocaine from the counterfeit potatoes.

La inteligencia de la @PoliciaColombia dio un contundente golpe al narcotráfico al incautar un cargamento de cocaína refrigerada y sellada al vacío simulando yucas y papas criollas. El alijo tenía como destino España. #EstrategiaEsmeralda pic.twitter.com/bttSuYBUCH

Anti-Narcotics Police Major General Ricardo Augusto Alarcón Campos called it the “most innovative case discovered by drug traffickers in recent years”. “They had designed the drug in irregular moulds simulating croquettes of cassava and papa criolla,” Campos told 9News.

There was no expiration date on the packets of the counterfeit potatoes and frozen chips, which led the police to suspect and uncover the items. Before the consignment was shipped from the Port of Cartagena to Spain, over 50 people and sniffer dogs worked to uncover the drugs. Police acted on a tip-off from an anonymous caller. A probe is underway to track down the accused behind the shipment, according to 9news.

“The review was costly, each bag had to be uncovered and each of the frozen tubers had to be checked, the irregular shapes of the cassava and potatoes once they are peeled and cut into squares aroused some suspicion among the uniformed men,” Campos added.

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