Drugs wash ashore on Peyia coast

A suspicious package off the Peyia coast turned out be 28 kilos of hashish, after a concerned citizen spotted something in the water and called authorities.

According to local media, law enforcement officials were notified Thursday afternoon about a suspicious package flowing in the water near the Peyia coastline in Paphos district.

Police officers who retrieved the package from the water later determined that it contained 28 kilos of cannabis resin.

After drug-squad officers examined the package, reports said the drugs appeared to be useless due to high quantities of salt accumulated during a long period of time in the water.

It was not clear if the package was meant for delivery in the area or if someone on a passing ship might have thrown it overboard. Police were said to be examining multiple scenarios, including someone on a boat possibly trying to get rid of the drugs.

Cannabis resin is a dark to light brown substance which is scraped off the surface of the Cannabis Plant and pressed into a solid lump, also known as hashish.

A British man, described as a 41-year-old permanent Peyia resident, also was arrested on Thursday on unrelated drug charges, after cops found plastic bags in his possession containing cocaine weighing approximately 18 grams.

Accordign to Cyprus News Agency, the plastic bags were hidden inside a plastic container while police also searched his house where they found one gram of cocaine and half a gram of cannabis, along with €4470 and £290 in cash.