In collaboration with French Customs, the Spanish Tax Agency has intercepted a sailing boat in Cartagena carrying more than 7 tonnes of hashish
Operation ‘Zacatin'
- The seized drugs would have had a value of more than 11 million euros on the illicit market
- The two crew members of the yacht, Russian nationals and natives of St. Petersburg, have been arrested
September 8, 2018 .- The Tax Agency intercepted in the early hours of yesterday, 100 miles east of Cabo de Palos, a 16-meter-long sloop-type sailboat with an American flag, named 'Bella', when it was transporting more than 200 bales of hashish. Pending final weighing, it is estimated that the amount seized could exceed 7,000 kilos of hashish resin, meaning that the value of the drug on the illicit market could have exceeded 11 million euros.
The operation, called 'Zacatín', began when representatives of the French Customs transferred the Customs and Excise Department to the from the Tax Agency an alert about the possible participation of this sailboat in the transport of a large shipment of narcotics, at which point the Tax Agency's Customs Surveillance aerial means tracked and located the yacht 'Bella' in the area normally used for loading this type of narcotic.
After reporting the sighting of the sailboat to the naval resources of the Tax Agency in Murcia, the monitoring and control phase of the vessel began, culminating at three in the morning yesterday with the boarding of the sailboat by the crew of the patrol boat Colimbo IV from the Cartagena Maritime Base of the AEAT.
Upon boarding the yacht, officers discover that the identity ('Amira') and port of registry displayed on the yacht's transom do not correspond to the name ('Bella') and port of registry listed on the vessel's official documentation; Furthermore, from the deck a large number of bales of the type normally used to transport hashish resin can be seen, which is why Customs Surveillance officials immediately arrested the two crew members and transferred them to the Port of Cartagena, along with the sailboat and the seized drugs.
The detainees, Russian nationals from St. Petersburg, the yacht and the drugs will soon be brought before the Central Court of Instruction of the National Court, which will be on duty.
Investigators suspect that the so-called 'Eastern Mediterranean route' is being used by organisations based in North African countries, transporting large quantities of hashish on pleasure boats or on merchant or fishing vessels, which are then stored in these countries.
Using these vessels, the drugs would later be redistributed towards Europe, without ruling out that, in some cases, they could be used as mother ships to transfer the hashish to other smaller vessels, which would introduce it directly to the Spanish or Italian coasts.
Customs Supervision: Presentation of charges for smuggling and related offences
Free telephone 900351378.
Email: denunciasvigilanciaaduanera@correo.aeat.es
Filming of the boarding operation (to download the video, enter the following web address):
Note: Photographic annex included: