Finding narco subs isn’t out of the ordinary. What is out of the ordinary, though, is finding $15 million worth of cocaine at the bottom of the Baltic Sea.

Some deep sea divers out of Poland were able to locate this massive haul as part of a joint operation between the country’s border guard, Europol, and the DEA. A press release revealed details of the investigation that began as part of the protection of critical infrastructure in the ocean.

After the cocaine was found, seven people were detained as part of the smuggling ring. The discovery of this crew also helped to find even more drugs that were on them at the time of the arrests. They face up to 20 years in prison if convicted. Minimally, they’ll see three years.

The underwater cocaine equated to 220 pounds.

Polish Divers Found $15 Million Worth of Cocaine Under the Baltic Sea

As for why patrols were even looking in the area, that has to do with NATO deploying more forces to the Baltic Sea after learning of sabotage to underwater cables and pipelines. Russia is being accused of being behind the incidents. Due to that, the area has been heavily monitored.

So, yeah, stashing a large amount of illegal drugs in the vicinity probably wasn’t the best move.

All of this is part of something that VICE spotlighted a few years back called “parasite smuggling.” This new age approach by drug dealers involves stowing away cocaine underwater so it’s easily concealed and utilizing the fact that the world is predominantly covered by water to maneuver product undetected.

That article mentioned the most popular hiding spot being the sea chest, which is “a cavity in the hull below the waterline which can only be reached by divers.”

The concept of deep-sea smuggling dates back to the 90s but has spiked in recent years. These operations can also include cocaine being dropped in boxes or containers and attached underneath boats without the vessel even knowing.

That doesn’t appear to be the case in this most recent drug bust. Photos that were shared show officers hauling away multiple “packages” which suggests this smuggling ring likely utilized one of those sea chests at the base of the ocean floor.