As the issue of drug traficking is becoming very disturbing in Sierra Leone with Europe’s most wanted man allegedly residing in Sierra Leone, a recent global report Sierra Leone has noted that “Sierra Leone serves as a critical node in West Africa’s “Western Hub,” acting as a major logistics and redistribution point for the global cocaine trade.”
The report highlighted that the country plays a specialized role in containerizing cocaine that has arrived through non-containerized maritime routes which allows traffickers to sidestep the rigorous screening and intelligence typically applied to exports departing directly from Latin American ports.
The report pointed out that the Western Balkan Starčević group imported cocaine via fishing vessels, containerized the shipments in Sierra Leone, and then exported the drugs to Antwerp concealed within cocoa husks.
“In 2025, a semi-submersible vessel washed up on Black Johnson beach, confirming that these vessels are used to transit the Gulf of Guinea and reach West African shores.Private aircraft linked to the cocaine trade have been tracked in the country, and criminal brokers have discussed using private planes to move consignments from Sierra Leone to South Africa for onward export,” the report noted.
