Costa Rica makes biggest ever cocaine haul Published duration 16 February

image copyright Reuters image caption Costa Rica has seen a surge in drug traffickers using the country to move cocaine to the US and Europe

Police in Costa Rica have made the biggest seizure of illegal drugs in the country's history - finding more than five tonnes of cocaine in a shipping container.

The drugs were hidden in a consignment of flowers headed for the Netherlands, AFP news agency quoted Interior Minister Michael Soto Rojas as saying.

A suspect has been arrested.

Central America is one of the main routes for cartels moving drugs from South America to the US and Europe.

When the authorities searched a suspicious shipping container on Saturday, they discovered 202 suitcases containing a total of 5,048 packages of cocaine weighing around 1 kg (2.2 lbs) each, AFP reports.

The arrested suspect is a 46-year-old Costa Rican.