Three arrested after disguising themselves as port workers and boarding containership

October 9 ------ Spanish authorities have arrested three people at the Port of Algeciras after two of them allegedly boarded a container vessel disguised as port workers in an attempt to retrieve a shipment of cocaine.

The arrests followed a joint operation involving the Spanish Tax Agency and the Guardia Civil, after officers detected suspicious activity around the vessel while it was alongside the quay and cargo operations were underway.

According to the authorities, Guardia Civil officers initially observed a personal watercraft behaving suspiciously near the containership. The craft subsequently approached the quay with three people on board.

Two of the occupants reportedly disembarked and boarded the vessel, allegedly wearing clothing intended to make them appear as port personnel. Officers intervened and searched the ship, where they discovered two backpacks containing packages of a substance later identified as cocaine.

The suspects are alleged to have removed the backpacks from a shipping container and concealed them after becoming aware of the presence of law enforcement officers.

Meanwhile, a Guardia Civil patrol vessel intercepted the third suspect, who was piloting the personal watercraft used to transport the other two individuals to the containership. Authorities later established that the watercraft had been reported stolen in La Línea de la Concepción.

Laboratory analysis confirmed that the seized shipment consisted of 50 packages of cocaine, with a total weight of 50 kg. The Spanish Tax Agency estimated the drugs’ market value at more than €1.5 million (US$1.7 million).

Following the operation, the three detainees, along with the case file and seized items, were handed over to a local court. The court subsequently ordered all three suspects to be remanded in custody pending further proceedings.

Source: safety4sea.com