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Ammunition shipment seized off Evia is legal, authorities say

Ammunition shipment seized off Evia is legal, authorities say

A shipment of ammunition seized by Greek authorities off the southern coast of Evia last week is legal and belongs to the Uruguayan army, coast guard officers said on Monday.

Authorities seized the Antigua and Barbuda-flagged vessel carrying the shipment after the crew was unable to produce any documentation attesting to its legitimacy.

The discovery of the two containers of military-grade ammunition led to the involvement of the coast guard’s special forces, the police’s narcotics squad and financial crimes investigators.

The probe traced the shipment to a defense firm in Bulgaria, which confirmed the ammunition is legal. The BBC Bergen was released from custody at the port of Piraeus and allowed to continue on its journey, coast guard officials said.

Greek authorities have been on high alert for arms smuggling after the seizure on February 28 of six containers of weapons and explosives off the coast of Crete that were destined for Lebanon, Ghana and Cameroon, without being accompanied by any official documentation.

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