Five held as Uruguay raids seize 21.5 kg of marijuana and 2,000 ecstasy pills
Police raids in Montevideo, Canelones and Rivera under Operation Arquímedes seized more than 21.5 kilograms of marijuana and 2,000 ecstasy pills, along with cocaine, 17,500 pesos and ammunition. Four men and one woman were detained and placed at the disposal of the second-turn drug prosecutor's office.
🇺🇾 Montevideo, Canelones and Rivera departments, Uruguay
Arrested
5
Cannabis
21.5 kg
Cash confiscated
UYU 17,500
Agencies
Brigada Departamental Antidrogas de Montevideo, Dirección General de Represión al Tráfico Ilícito de Drogas
Police in Uruguay carried out several raids in Montevideo, Canelones and Rivera
in an operation called Arquímedes aimed at an organization selling and
distributing drugs around the country.[1]Four men and one woman were detained
and left at the disposal of the Second Turn drug prosecutor’s office.[2]
Officers seized more than 21 and a half kilograms of marijuana, part of a haul
that also included cocaine, ammunition and items used to sell the drugs.[3]Police also seized 2,000 ecstasy pills and 17,500 pesos.[3]
The raids were led by the Montevideo departmental anti-drug brigade with support
from the General Directorate for Repression of Illicit Drug Trafficking, after
an investigation of several months.[1]The Interior Ministry, whose statement
the outlets published, said the operation was meant to break up an organization
selling and distributing narcotics in different parts of the country.[3]
Photos and video
Photo captioned 'La Brigada Antidrogas incautó 2.000 pastillas de éxtasis', published with the Interior Ministry handout on the Operation Arquímedes raids. Photo: Ministerio del InteriorPhoto details
The raids took place on a Wednesday, 18 January 2023, according to Montevideo Portal; Telenoche reports the Interior Ministry statement on Thursday 19 January, which is also its publication date.
Sources differ on the marijuana weight: Telenoche and Montevideo Portal give more than 21.5 kilograms, while Subrayado, El País and Portal Medios Públicos give more than 20 kilograms; the report uses the 21.5 kg figure.
The cash figure differs between accounts: 17,500 pesos in the statement Telenoche published and in other outlets, and 17,150 pesos in an El Observador account that could not be opened.
El Observador describes the seized material in detail and gives the detainees' ages as 22 to 27, but that page returned an access error and only the search snippet was seen, so no facts are taken from it.
A Subrayado report of 20 January 2023 says three detainees were convicted and one was charged; that page could not be opened, so the court outcome is not recorded here and no sentence is given.
Subrayado and El País say the group obtained the drugs on the Brazilian border and distributed them through interdepartmental bus parcels, and El Observador mentions electronic music parties and social media sales; those pages could not be opened and the details are not used.
No breakdown of the marijuana by product or location, and no plant count, was published.
Maldonado police reported 90 anti-drug raids leading to 104 people charged or convicted and 47 drug sale points dismantled. The operations seized 30 kilograms of marijuana along with cocaine, vehicles, firearms and cash.
Police found 2.320 kilos of marijuana and other drugs, phones and routers near a module of Unit 4 of Uruguay's national rehabilitation institute, the former Comcar prison, in Montevideo on 23 August 2026. The Ministry of the Interior valued the combined haul at about US$330,000, and the case moved to a narcotics prosecutor investigating collusion by prison staff, soldiers and prisoners.
Anti-drug police raided a drug storage and processing residence in Maldonado Nuevo on 21 May 2026 under Operation Jacobo, seizing 7.5 kilograms of marijuana alongside 4.5 kilograms of cocaine. Officers also confiscated three modified Glock pistols, more than 550 rounds of ammunition and 140,000 Uruguayan pesos as prosecutors investigated the Maldonado and San Carlos network.
Operation Fortuna intercepted 11 postal shipments and seized about 63 kg of hashish sent from the United States, then police detained 13 people in raids across Montevideo, Canelones and Rocha. A court formalized proceedings against 12 detainees and ordered 120 days of preventive detention, while the remaining detainee was released.
