Uruguayan arrested on sailing vessel with 2,100 kg of cocaine off Galician coast
A Polish-flagged sailing vessel carrying 2,100 kg of cocaine was intercepted 400 miles from Galicia. Among the four crew members arrested is a Uruguayan citizen.
Operation "Doncella": sailing vessel with 2,100 kilos of cocaine intercepted in the Atlantic
A Uruguayan citizen is among four crew members arrested following the boarding of a Polish-flagged sailing vessel that was carrying 2,100 kilos of cocaine approximately 400 miles off the coast of Galicia, according to montevideo.com.uy. The vessel was towed to the port of Vigo as part of an operation called Doncella, which also resulted in the arrest of a fifth suspect on land.
The sailing vessel, a sloop of some 14 metres in length, was located in the early hours of Monday 14 July by the Special Operations vessel Petrel I, of the Spanish Customs Surveillance Service, after several days of tracking. On board, officers found 70 packages distributed across different areas of the ship with a total weight of approximately 2,100 kilos of cocaine.
An investigation that began in February
The operation originated in February, when the Customs Surveillance Service unit in Girona received information about a vessel allegedly linked to illicit activities on the border between Spain and France. Investigators subsequently identified the sailing vessel and detected elements consistent with its use for drug trafficking.
The vessel was located in June at the port of Roses, where it was placed under surveillance. On 11 July it set sail without activating the AIS system, the tracking device whose use is mandatory under certain navigation circumstances. From that point on, monitoring of its course towards the Atlantic was carried out with the collaboration of the British National Crime Agency (NCA) and the United States Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), through the Maritime Analysis and Operations Centre – Narcotics (MAOC-N).
Four nationalities among the crew
The four arrested crew members are citizens of Argentina, Uruguay, Colombia and Albania. According to the investigation, the Albanian citizen held a supervisory role in the operation: he monitored that the drug transfer was being carried out as planned by the receiving organisation.
While the Petrel I towed the sailing vessel towards Vigo, the operation continued on land. In the province of Girona, a Chilean citizen was arrested, identified as allegedly responsible for acquiring vessels with the appropriate characteristics for this type of transport. A Spanish citizen residing in Barcelona, to whom custody of the vessels and monitoring of possible approaches by authorities is attributed, remains pending arrest.
A network that supplied boats to other organisations
According to the Customs Surveillance Service, the investigated group was not directly involved in drug trafficking but in supplying vessels to other drug-trafficking networks. Investigators argue that the organisation offered its services to groups operating in Eastern Europe and the Balkans. The use of recreational sailing vessels and the choice of certain flags formed part of the strategy to make detection of the shipments more difficult.
The operation involved the participation of Polish authorities, French customs and various international agencies, as well as the Centre for Intelligence against Terrorism and Organised Crime (Citco) and MAOC-N.
The five arrested individuals are being investigated for alleged offences of membership of a criminal organisation, smuggling and offences against public health. The case will be handled by Spain's National Court.
The operation is part of what is called the Atlantic cocaine route, used by drug-trafficking organisations to transport drugs from South America and carry out transshipments at sea before introducing the shipments into Europe. The investigation remains open and those in charge of the operation do not rule out further arrests.
Source: Google News UY — Crime