Police in Costa Rica have made the biggest seizure of illegal drugs in the country's history - finding more than five tons of cocaine in a shipping container, BBC News reported.

The drugs were hidden in a consignment of flowers headed for the Netherlands.

A suspect has been arrested.

When the authorities searched a suspicious shipping container, they discovered 202 suitcases containing a total of 5,048 packages of cocaine weighing around 1 kg each.

The arrested suspect is a 46-year-old Costa Rican.