Toronto: An Indian-origin couple has been charged in Canada with smuggling nearly 100-kg cocaine from the US with a street value of up to USD 8 million, a media report said today.

Gurminder Singh Toor, 31, and Kirandeep Kaur Toor, 26, from California, hauling a commercial load of produce from California to Alberta were stopped at the Coutts border last Saturday. Alberta is a western province of Canada.

Border officers searched the truck and found 84 bricks of cocaine weighing 99.5 kilograms, considered the largest suspected cocaine seizure recorded by Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) officers in Alberta's history, Lethbridge Herald reported.

The first eight bricks of cocaine were found hidden in a microwave and the rest were found hidden in and under the living quarters, the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) said in a release. "Had this quantity of illicit narcotics made its way into our communities undetected, the impact could have been devastating," said CBSA regional director general Kim R Scoville. "The CBSA is truly Canada's first line of defence, and this record seizure is a prime example of how frontline officers are actively protecting Canadians every day."

The two were charged with two counts each of importing drugs, and drug possession for the purpose of trafficking. The two accused appeared in provincial court yesterday. The couple was released from custody on each posting USD 10,000 cash bail.

They were also ordered not to leave Alberta, to provide authorities with any travel documents, report weekly and in person to the RCMP, live at a specific address in northwest Edmonton, and not possess any weapons or explosives. Their next court hearing is scheduled for January 19.

PTI