Spanish authorities have seized more than two tons of cocaine from a sailboat in the Atlantic and arrested four crew members, including a suspected Albanian national, according to Spanish media reports.
The operation was carried out by Spain’s Customs Surveillance Service, which intercepted the vessel on the high seas. The sailboat is being towed toward the port of Vigo by the customs vessel Petrel I, where the drugs and detainees are expected to be brought ashore.
The four crew members are reportedly of different nationalities. Among those arrested is believed to be an Albanian citizen, while at least two others are reportedly from South America. Authorities have not yet released further details about their identities.
The investigation is believed to have originated in Catalonia and led authorities to locate the sailboat while it was sailing in the Atlantic. Officials have not disclosed the exact location where the vessel was intercepted or provided details about the suspected trafficking network.
The seizure is reportedly one of the largest operations conducted exclusively by Spain’s Customs Surveillance Service this year.
The vessel is the second so-called “narco-sailboat” intercepted by the Petrel this summer. In June, an international operation involving French customs, the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), Britain’s National Crime Agency (NCA) and Frontex led to the interception of another sailboat near the Canary Islands. Approximately 500 kilograms of cocaine were found hidden inside its cabins.
Authorities in Galicia have faced increased activity in the fight against maritime drug trafficking in recent months. In August alone, approximately three tons of cocaine were seized in two separate operations in Muxía and A Pobra do Caramiñal.
The use of recreational sailboats to transport cocaine across the Atlantic and into Europe has been identified by law enforcement agencies for years. Such vessels can cross the Atlantic while attracting less attention than larger commercial trafficking operations.
Several sailboats connected to drug-trafficking investigations have been intercepted over the past decade by Spanish Customs Surveillance, the National Police and the Civil Guard, including vessels linked to operations involving the Vigo area.
In 2023, Spanish authorities intercepted the sailboat Goldwasser approximately 480 nautical miles from the Azores. The vessel was carrying nearly three tons of cocaine and was seized in difficult weather and sea conditions in an operation involving the National Police and Customs Surveillance.
The latest operation adds to a series of major maritime drug seizures in the waters surrounding Spain, particularly along Galicia’s Atlantic coast.
