Two held as police seize 114 kg of marijuana from truck near Riga
Latvian State Police detained two men, born in 1977 and 1978, on 26 August 2026 and found a Mercedes Benz truck carrying 114 kg of dried marijuana during searches in the Riga region. Both were held in custody while investigators continued work against an organised group they said the two had formed with at least two accomplices to buy, store and sell drugs.
Officers of the State Police’s Administration for Combating Organised Crime and
Serial Crimes tracked an organised criminal group suspected of large-scale drug
trafficking during operational work against illegal trafficking of narcotic and
psychotropic substances.[1]The two suspects, born in 1977 and 1978, were
detained on 26 August.[1]Both detainees were kept in custody.[1]Investigators concluded that the detainees had agreed with at least two
accomplices to form an organised group to acquire, store and sell drugs.[1]Police said the roles and duties of each group member were strictly divided.[1]
As part of the investigation, police carried out procedural measures including
searches in the Riga region.[1]Officers found a Mercedes Benz truck
containing 114 kg of dried marijuana.[1]The State Police said its
investigation was continuing.[1]
Photos and video
State Police handout photo published with the account of the truck in which officers found 114 kg of dried marijuana. Photo: Publicitātes foto (State Police)Photo details
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Source: DelfiSecond State Police handout photo from the gallery published with the account of the truck and drug seizure in the Riga region. Photo: Publicitātes foto (State Police)Photo details
No separate date is given for the searches; 26 August 2026 is the reported arrest date and is used as the incident date.
The account does not say how many searches were carried out or whether any place other than the truck was involved, so only one vehicle is recorded and no site count is given.
No street value, Criminal Law section or court outcome was reported; the suspects were held in custody while the investigation continued.
The suspects were identified only by birth year, and no names or pleas were released.
Only one opened account of this event was found: Delfi's Russian-language version of the State Police statement. No independent reporting or the police's own release could be opened.
The gallery images carry only the credit Publicitātes foto, and the article does not caption what each of the five photos depicts.
Latvia's Economic Affairs Court will continue hearing witnesses on 4 December in the trial of nine people, among them Jurijs Spiridonovs, accused of producing marijuana in indoor plantations in Spain and selling it in Latvia and Norway. Prosecutors say the group, active from 2020 to autumn 2024, laundered its earnings through bank accounts and property in Riga; four defendants remain in custody.
Latvian police detained six members of a Latvian-Lithuanian group that hid drugs in barrels buried in forests near Riga, with two more members directing activity from prison. Officers found about 36 kg of mixed drugs including marijuana and hashish plus 34 THC devices, and a court remanded five suspects in custody.
Latvian State Police detained two men in Rīga on 8 March 2026 and found about 11 kg of cocaine and 3 kg of marijuana at one suspect's home, plus small amounts at the other's apartment. Police valued the whole haul at about €1 million and called it their largest cocaine seizure since 2019; a court refused to remand the men, applying non-custodial measures instead.
Latvian State Police stopped a Lithuanian-plated truck near Jēkabpils on 12 March 2021 and found about 1,000 kg of hashish hidden under artificial stone slabs, the largest hashish seizure in the force's history. Two suspects were detained.
