Hook, line and sinker
The Guardian Weekly|September 17, 2021
Billed as the most secure messaging device on the planet, An0m became a viral sensation in the underworld. There was just one problem for those using it for criminal means: it was run by the police
Simon Parkin
Hook, line and sinker

The rain pattered lightly on the harbour of the Belgian city of Ghent when, on 21 June 2021, a team of professional divers slipped below the surface into the emerald murk. The Brazilian tanker, heavy with fruit juice bound for Australia, had already crossed the Atlantic Ocean, but its journey wasn’t halfway done as the divers felt their way along the barnacled serration of its hull. They were looking for the sea chest, a metallic inlet below the waterline, through which the ship draws seawater to cool its engines. Tucked inside, they found what they were looking for: three long sacks, each wrapped in a thick black plastic bag and trussed with black-and-white-striped nautical rope.

The sacks were heavy. Each one weighed as much as a sheep and, shaped like a body bag, could feasibly have contained one. As the Belgian police opened the first bag, a stack of crimson bricks slid out. Had this cargo reached Australia, where high demand and meagre supply has pushed the price of a kilo of cocaine to eight times its equivalent cost in North America, the haul would have been worth more than A$ 64 m ( $47m ).

Denne historien er fra September 17, 2021-utgaven av The Guardian Weekly.

Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.

Denne historien er fra September 17, 2021-utgaven av The Guardian Weekly.

Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.

FLERE HISTORIER FRA THE GUARDIAN WEEKLYSe alt
No 298 Bean, cabbage and coconut-milk soup
The Guardian Weekly

No 298 Bean, cabbage and coconut-milk soup

Deep, sweet heat. A soup that soothes and invigorates simultaneously.

time-read
1 min  |
January 03, 2025
Cottage cheese goes viral: in reluctant praise of a food trend
The Guardian Weekly

Cottage cheese goes viral: in reluctant praise of a food trend

I was asked recently which food trends I think will take over in 2025.

time-read
2 mins  |
January 03, 2025
I'm worried that my teenage son is in a toxic relationship
The Guardian Weekly

I'm worried that my teenage son is in a toxic relationship

A year ago, our almost 18-year-old son began seeing a girl, who is a year older than him and is his first \"real\" girlfriend.

time-read
3 mins  |
January 03, 2025
BOOKS OF THE MONTH
The Guardian Weekly

BOOKS OF THE MONTH

A roundup of the best recent science fiction, fantasy and horror

time-read
2 mins  |
January 03, 2025
Dying words
The Guardian Weekly

Dying words

The Nobel prize winner explores the moment of death and beyond in a probing tale of a fisher living in near solitude

time-read
2 mins  |
January 03, 2025
Origin story
The Guardian Weekly

Origin story

We homo sapiens evolved and succeeded when other hominins didn't-but now our expansionist drive is threatening the planet

time-read
3 mins  |
January 03, 2025
Glad rags to riches
The Guardian Weekly

Glad rags to riches

Sarcastic, self-aware and surprisingly sad, the first volume of Cher's extraordinary memoir mixes hard times with the high life

time-read
3 mins  |
January 03, 2025
Sail of the century
The Guardian Weekly

Sail of the century

Anenigmatic nautical radio bulletin first broadcast 100 years ago, the Shipping Forecast has beguiled and inspired poets, pop stars and listeners worldwide

time-read
5 mins  |
January 03, 2025
How does it feel?
The Guardian Weekly

How does it feel?

A Complete Unknown retells Bob Dylan's explosive rise, but it als resonates with today's toxic fame and politics. The creative team expl their process-and wha the singer made of it all

time-read
7 mins  |
January 03, 2025
The Guardian Weekly

Jane Austen's enduring legacy lies in her relevance as a foil for modern mores

For some, it will be enough merely to re-read Persuasion, and thence to cry yet again at Captain Wentworth's declaration of utmost love for Anne Elliot.

time-read
2 mins  |
January 03, 2025