Spanish police seized this homemade narco-submarine capable of carrying up to 2.2 tons of cargo.
Photograph:
National Police / Associated Press
Spanish police said on Friday that they had seized a 30-foot-long narco-submarine that could carry 2.2 tons of narcotics, a sign of how far away cartels are transporting illegal drugs to the thriving European market.
Police said they discovered the narco-submarine in Malaga, on the Costa del Sol, Spain, last month, as part of an international police operation that resulted in the arrest of 52 people and the seizure of over 400 kilograms of cocaine, along with with other illegal drugs and money.
The vessel was made of fiberglass and plywood and powered by two 200 horsepower engines, although it had never sailed, police said.
Narcosubmersibles are semi-submersibles that float mainly below the waterline and have long transported cocaine from Colombia to Central America. In 2019, Spanish police discovered a narco-submarine off Spain’s Atlantic coast, confirming persistent rumors that they may reach Europe.
The US Anti-Drug Agency said that Europe may have overtaken the United States as the largest cocaine market in the world. Most shipments of cocaine are hidden in container ships that dock at major ports, such as Antwerp in Belgium and Rotterdam in the Netherlands.
Spanish police said the narco-sub discovered last month probably intended to transport cocaine to the land of a larger ship that would have brought cargo across the Atlantic Ocean.
Write to James Marson at [email protected]
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