In addition, 24 tonnes of tobacco were intercepted, and the agencies also shut down six laboratories, five drug warehouses and a place where tobacco was sliced, officials told reporters.
Poland's police chief Jarosław Szymczyk announced that a new smuggling trail had been uncovered, whereby drugs were being brought into Poland on board light aircraft.
Such a plane was seized at an airport in Poland's western Lubuskie province, carrying over 73 kilograms of Spanish marijuana with a street value of more than PLN 3.5 million, according to officials.
In another successful move, the agencies shut down an underground mephedrone factory. It had been operating on an industrial scale, churning out up to hundreds of kilograms of the drug per week, Poland's PAP news agency reported.
The "chemists" were armed with handguns and machine guns, but the police raid took them by surprise, officials told a news conference.
Operation Greenlight
Special Agent Michael Malsch, head of the FBI's Warsaw Office, said the team-up with Polish law enforcement officers was part of an international operation codenamed Greenlight.
The FBI was able to decrypt conversations held by criminals on the ANoM messaging app, which, unbeknownst to these people, had in fact been created by the FBI itself, Malsch said.
In all, upwards of 12,000 ANoM apps were sold to more than 300 criminal groups in over 100 countries, and more than 800 individuals were arrested as a result of Operation Greenlight, according to Malsch.
Special Agent Michael Malsch, head of the FBI's Warsaw office, speaks at a joint news conference with Polish law enforcement officials on Tuesday. Photo: PAP/Tomasz Gzell
Poland's Szymczyk said his police force intercepted over 17 tonnes of drugs last year and close to 9 tonnes in the first half of 2021.
(pm/gs)
Source: PAP
Click on the "Play" button above for an audio report by Radio Poland’s Agnieszka Bielawska.