Joint operation with the Tax Agency, National Police and the Guardia Civil

• Three people have been arrested during an operation that has been one of the largest arrests of this year, successfully reducing the activity of criminal organizations based in the Strait of Gibraltar.
• The boat was used by a high-level criminal organization that intended to introduce large quantities of drugs through the Spanish coasts.

May 2, 2021.- In a joint operation by the Tax Agency, the Civil Guard and the National Police, more than seven tons of hashish have been seized and three people have been arrested during an intervention carried out on the high seas, proceeding to board a vessel that had been under investigation for more than a year and was the target of the MAOC (Maritime Analysis and Operations center), a European body for combating drug trafficking in the maritime field, and the Maritime Intelligence Offices of Customs of Galicia and the Canary Islands.

Police investigations into the merchant ship began in March 2020, when it was already being investigated by other nations such as the Netherlands and France. According to investigators, the vessel had been used to transport drugs in several countries. It is known that the vessel was going to be used by a high-level criminal organisation that intended to introduce a large quantity of hashish through the Spanish coasts. The organisation had set up its logistics centre in Huelva, a town where the Guardia Civil and the Tax Agency's Customs Surveillance opened judicial proceedings.

The progress of the investigations led to the identification of the crew members, and control over the merchant vessel continued until, with all the necessary information gathered, it was agreed to board the vessel in international waters with the support of the Centre for Intelligence against Terrorism and Organized Crime (CITCO).

The vessel, named Felsted, was a tugboat that had been converted to have a large hold, so it could transport large quantities of drugs. Furthermore, this type of vessel is very resistant to the worst weather conditions, so the organization takes advantage of the 'rough seas' to transport the drugs.

Despite the difficult weather conditions, a device is organized in which two Civil Guard vessels participate: the offshore patrol vessel Río Arlanza and the ocean-going vessel Río Miño. The operation lasts two days and, in addition to the Civil Guards, two agents from the Tax Agency are on board.

Finally, the tugboat is detected and a stealthy boarding is carried out with two auxiliary vessels from the Miño River. The crew did not notice the police action until the officers were on board the tugboat.

The tug is escorted by the vessels of the Benemérita to the Port of Algeciras where 200 bales are unloaded, which once weighed reach a weight of 7,130 kilos.

This is one of the largest seizures of this year, with more than seven tons of hashish seized, which helps to reduce the activity of criminal organizations based in the Strait of Gibraltar and prevent the advance of organized crime in Campo de Gibraltar.