Spanish police announced on Sunday that they seized 6.5 tons of cocaine and arrested nine people following a U.S. tip-off that led to a raid on a ship off the Canary Islands a few days ago.
According to a police statement, the narcotics were hidden in the hold of the boat, which was flying a Tanzanian flag. The ship had departed from Panama and was en route to Vigo, located in northwest Spain. Officials noted that the cargo ship, approximately 177 feet long, had unusual structures on board designed to conceal the cocaine.
The U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), the federal agency responsible for combating drug trafficking, provided key information that enabled the success of the operation, the police press release stated.
Police also released video footage on social media showing officers intercepting the suspected drug-trafficking ship using a speedboat.
Spain is one of the main entry points for cocaine into Europe, owing to its strong ties with Latin America—where the drug is primarily produced—and its strategic geographical position in the southwest of the continent.
In June, law enforcement agencies from multiple countries dismantled a drug trafficking ring that used high-speed “narco boats” to smuggle large quantities of cocaine from Brazil and Colombia to the Canary Islands. Authorities revealed that the ring allegedly used an abandoned shipwreck as a refueling platform for the speedboats.
Last October, Spanish police made their largest-ever cocaine seizure by discovering approximately 13 tons hidden in a shipment of bananas arriving at the southern port of Algeciras. This operation was made possible by intelligence provided by Ecuadoran police, Spanish national police said at the time.
Large drug seizures from boats have also been reported in other parts of the world recently. Earlier this month, U.S. Central Command confirmed that a Pakistani navy ship seized narcotics worth more than $972 million from sailboats in the Arabian Sea. Additionally, last month, the French navy confiscated nearly 10 tons of cocaine valued at over $600 million from a fishing vessel off the coast of West Africa.
https://www.cbsnews.com/news/cocaine-seized-boat-canary-islands-spain-tip-us-dea/
