Africa-Press – Cape verde. An unflagged fishing vessel bound for Spain was intercepted in waters near Cape Verde with 1 ton of cocaine on board. The operation was carried out by the Spanish National Police and tax agency, in cooperation with the Portuguese Judicial Police and the American drug enforcement agency – DEA (Drug Enforcement Administration).
In a statement, the Spanish Ministry of the Interior revealed this Thursday, 28, the contours of this arrest, which culminated in the detention of six individuals, making reference to the fact that the vessel was sailing in waters “close” to Cape Verde, approximately “600 miles.”
The fishing vessel, named “Mathieu”, registered in the port of Georgetown (capital of Guyana), was without a flag.
The alert was apparently given by the DEA, after which the exchange of information between the Spanish and Portuguese authorities coincided, which culminated in the interception of the vessel on the high seas.
Cocaine hidden on the aft deck
During the search of the ship, still at sea, 40 bales of cocaine were found on the stern deck.
After transferring the drugs and the detainees to the “Fulmar” patrol, from the Spanish Tax Agency, the fishing vessel was then towed to the port of Arrecife, Lanzarote, Spain.
Of the six crew members detained, two are of Albanian nationality and the rest are Guyanese (Guyana – South America).
Guyana is located in the extreme north of South America, and its territory borders Brazil (to the south), Venezuela (to the west) and Suriname (to the east), in addition to being bathed by the Atlantic Ocean (to the north).
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