Maputo — The Malaysian police have seized 76 kilos of cocaine that was allegedly on its way to Mozambique.

The drug, with a street value of about 7.2 million US dollars, was found on board a ship in Port Klang, the port for the Malaysian capital Kuala Lumpur, hidden in tins marked as processed pineapple and coconut milk.

A news item carried by the Malaysian news agency Bernama, said the cocaine was being smuggled by a Nigerian drugs syndicate, which had hit on the tactic of dissolving the drug in coconut milk in an attempt to avoid detection.

According to a Malaysian narcotics officer, Datuk Noor Rashid Ibrahim, the ship was inspected immediately after its arrival on 12 November, on the basis of a tip-off from the United States Drug Enforcement Administration (USDEA). The inspectors found 980 cartons of cans containing coconut milk with chunks of pineapple.

"Sixteen cartons comprising 384 cans of coconut milk were identified as mixtures with 400 grammes of cocaine in each can by the Chemistry Department," Rashid Ibrahim told a press conference on Monday.

He said the container had started its journey from Guyana in South America and was to be sent to Mozambique via South Africa where the container would have been transferred onto another ship.