TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — Police arrested two fishermen after they found 660 kilograms of the illegal drug ketamine with an estimated street value of NT$1.3 billion (US$40.87 million) floating in the ocean off Taiwan’s north coast, reports said Friday (Sept. 23).

The find took place in May off the scenic coastal area of Yehliu in New Taipei City, CNA reported. Following an investigation into where the drugs had come from, prosecutors on Friday indicted two men named Tai (戴) and Chen (陳), the owner and the captain of the fishing trawler Kun Lun Tsai 66 respectively.

The two left the harbor of Nanfang’ao in Yilan County in May on their way to the area north of Keelung, where they recovered 33 bags of ketamine from the ocean after a satellite phone conversation with a member of a drug smuggling ring, prosecutors said.

However, to evade detection that evening, they stayed 10 nautical miles (8.5 km) from Yehliu. The next day at 4 a.m., they dumped the bags into the ocean but, due to a miscalculation of local currents, they lost sight of the drugs. Other fishermen found the packages 500 meters from the coast and alerted the coast guard.

Prosecutors said Friday they had received permission from the court to detain the two suspects, while they will also apply to confiscate the fishing vessel.

The case was the second major arrest involving ketamine announced in one week. Prosecutors announced Thursday (Sept. 22) they had detained a suspect in the smuggling of 43 kg of ketamine inside steel bowls imported from Italy.