Ecuador Seizes Cocaine With Erling Haaland’s Face
Ecuadorian police seized 469 kg of cocaine near Colombia, with packages carrying stickers featuring soccer star Erling Haaland.
Ecuadorian police seized nearly half a ton of cocaine from a truck near the Colombian border, and the packages came with an unusual marking: stickers showing the face of Norwegian soccer star Erling Haaland.
The seizure took place on the Pan-American Highway after police received an anonymous tip about a suspicious truck. Officers stopped the vehicle and found 370 packages containing 469 kilograms (1,034 pounds) of cocaine hidden in a false compartment.
The driver was arrested, while police also detained a woman identified as María R., who was carrying Colombian identification documents.
Police footage released after the operation showed officers pulling the green packages from the truck. Haaland’s image was printed on stickers attached to the packages.
Why the traffickers chose Haaland remains unclear. Ecuadorian authorities have not suggested that the Manchester City and Norway striker had any connection to the shipment.
The woman identified as María R. was arrested in the Guagua Negro area near Tulcán, a city close to Ecuador’s border with Colombia.
Authorities have not publicly detailed the woman’s alleged role in the shipment. The driver was also taken into custody following the seizure.
The use of Haaland’s image may look bizarre, but celebrity markings on drug shipments are not entirely unusual. The Associated Press reported that traffickers sometimes use names, logos and images of well-known figures to identify shipments, criminal groups or their intended recipients.
Haaland is not the first footballer to appear on seized cocaine. Lionel Messi’s image has also been found on drug packages in a previous seizure.
There is currently no indication that Haaland himself was involved. Police have simply not explained why his image was selected. The shipment was valued at nearly $842,000 on Ecuador’s domestic market.
Had it reached international markets, authorities estimated its value at more than $11 million in the United States and over $19.6 million in Europe.
The seizure comes as Ecuador continues to deal with large-scale cocaine trafficking. AP reported that around 80% of the drugs entering Ecuador originate in Colombia, with the remainder coming from Peru.
Police seized approximately 80 tons of drugs during the first six months of 2026. That followed nearly 215 tons seized in 2025 and almost 295 tons in 2024, according to figures cited by authorities.
For now, the reason behind the unusual Haaland stickers remains a mystery. What is clear is that they were attached to a shipment containing hundreds of kilograms of cocaine that never reached its destination.
Sources: CBS News and Associated Press
Related articles :
__Reports are sourced from official documents, law-enforcement updates, and credible investigations.
Discover additional reports, market trends, crime analysis and Harm Reduction articles on DarkDotWeb to stay informed about the latest dark web operations.__