Authorities Find 560 Kilos of Cocaine, Meth Concealed in Vehicle Parts at Vancouver Airport

Border authorities have seized 560 kilograms of illegal drugs destined for Australia that were concealed within a shipment of vehicle parts at Vancouver’s airport.

Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) officers found 300 compressed powder bricks of cocaine and 110 vacuum-sealed packages of methamphetamine during an inspection on Sept. 3, the agency said in a press release this week.

The discovery marks one of the most substantial seizures designated for export at Vancouver International Airport, the border authority said.

The drugs have since been turned over to the RCMP and the investigation is ongoing.

CBSA Pacific Region Regional Director General Nina Patel says the seizure “represents millions of dollars kept out of the hands of criminals.”

This is the third major bust the agency has announced in recent days.

The agency announced in an Oct. 30 press release its officers confiscated 4,300 litres of precursor chemicals in May from containers that were shipped from China, en route to Calgary. The chemicals are used in the production of fentanyl and other illegal drugs. 

Border officers at the Tsawwassen Container Examination Facility in Delta, B.C., inspected two marine containers from China on May 13 and 15 and found 60 clear jugs and 20 blue drums containing precursor chemicals.

The agency said the containers contained 500 litres of fentanyl precursor propionyl chloride, as well as 3,600 litres of a precursor for manufacturing GHB, and 200 litres of GBL. Both GHB and GLB are used as so-called date-rape drugs.

The agency also announced that officers at the Coutts port of entry in Alberta found $7 million in cocaine during the inspection of a commercial truck seeking entry into Canada from the United States. 

Nearly 77 kilograms of cocaine was found during the Sept. 25 inspection and the CBSA arrested the driver, a resident of Calgary.

Surj Singh Salaria, 28, was arrested and faces three drug-related charges. His first court appearance to answer to the charges was on Oct. 27.

CBSA data from the first quarter of fiscal 2025-2026 shows border officers have intercepted the equivalent of more than 1.3 million doses of unidentified drugs and chemicals.

Officers have also seized 566 grams of fentanyl, an opioid that the agency described as “20 to 40 times more potent than heroin and 100 times more potent than morphine.” 

Border authorities have also seized 663,041 grams of cocaine, 222,037 grams of hash, and 36,559 grams of heroin.

The CBSA said smuggling narcotics and other violations of the Customs Act may lead to the removal of foreign nationals from Canada, as well as a ban on their re-entry into the country.