Attempted drug delivery by helicopter thwarted in northern Morocco
The Royal Gendarmerie of Fahs-Anjra province has foiled a trafficking operation using a helicopter that entered Moroccan airspace illegally. One suspect has been arrested, three others are at large.
Clandestine helicopter intercepted near Tangier: international trafficking network dismantled
Moroccan authorities foiled an attempt to deliver narcotics by helicopter in the north of the Kingdom last weekend, according to fr.hespress.com. The aircraft had illegally entered Moroccan airspace as part of an international trafficking operation.
Elements of the Royal Gendarmerie in Fahs-Anjra province, under the regional command in Tangier, chased a vehicle that had refused to stop at a checkpoint. The Volkswagen Touareg SUV was carrying a substantial cargo of drugs intended to be handed over to the helicopter that had entered Moroccan territory clandestinely.
The operation resulted in the arrest of one suspect. Three other individuals, suspected of belonging to the same network operating between Morocco and Spain, remain at large.
Searches carried out in the area where the vehicle departed, in Bni Ouassine, municipality of Melloussa near Tangier, resulted in the seizure of several items: Spanish phone cards, balaclavas, bladed weapons and a quantity of hard drugs.
Tracing the registration plate of the Touareg enabled investigators to identify the vehicle rental company that owned it. The investigation also established presumed links between the suspects and a major drug baron active on both sides of the Strait of Gibraltar.
The search continues to identify all the national and international ramifications of the network.
This case comes a few weeks after a similar incident, during which a small aircraft briefly entered Moroccan airspace before disappearing, raising questions about the new methods employed by cross-border trafficking networks.
Source: Google News MA