Aug. 4 (Bloomberg) -- Police in Bolivia seized 5 metric tons of cocaine destined for Spain in the South American nation's biggest drug bust, the Associated Press reported, citing Interior Minister Yerko Kukoc.

The drugs were discovered in two separate raids Friday and Saturday by Bolivia's Special Anti-Drug Force, acting on tips from the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration and Spanish police, AP cited Kukoc as saying yesterday. More than 20 people were arrested.

Bolivia is the world's third largest producer of coca, the plant used to make cocaine, after Colombia and Peru. About 80 percent of the country's coca plantations have been eradicated under a U.S.-backed program in recent years, AP said.

U.K. and Spanish customs officers in May seized 3.6 tons of cocaine from Colombia on a boat in the Atlantic Ocean, the British Broadcasting Corp. said at the time.

(Associated Press 8-4)

{NWAP <GO>} for the AP Web site

Last Updated: August 4, 2003 00:11 EDT