Spain: they made ultra-fast boats to transport drugs

Europe 1 3:41 p.m., April 19, 2022, modified at 3:43 p.m., April 19, 2022

Spanish police announced on Tuesday that they had dismantled a gang of criminals specializing in the construction of ultra-fast boats to transport drugs by sea.

Trapdoors designed to hide drugs

A total of 22 people were arrested and 20 boats seized during searches carried out in the cities of Pontevedra and La Coruña (north), Madrid, Salamanca (north-west of Madrid) and Barcelona (north-east), as well as in northern Portugal, police said in a statement.

The criminal organization was dedicated to "the manufacture and development of high-speed boats, which were then used to introduce large quantities of narcotics by sea", she said.

In the images provided by the police, we can see a large hangar with many upturned boat hulls, as well as hatches designed to hide the drugs directly in the structure of the boats.

Boats of a "prohibited type"

Among the members of the group were people "highly qualified" in the manufacture of these boats of a "prohibited kind", explained the police.

Once ready, these speedboats were transported to "various places" on the peninsula, before being used for the transport of drugs "in the southern area of ​​​​Spain".

Spain is the main entry point for drugs in Europe, due to its proximity to North Africa, a cannabis-producing region, and its links with South America, where cocaine originates.

Many seizures take place at sea.