Spanish police make "record-breaking" cocaine bust off the coast of Africa
Between 35,000 and 40,000kg of the class A drug were seized.
Police in Spain have seized what they believe to be a international record for impounded cocaine from a vessel intercepted off the coast of North Africa.
Listen to this article
Spain's Civil Guard intercepted a vessel in international waters near the Canary Islands on Friday, arresting 20 of its crew.
Around 35 to 40 tons of cocaine were seized from the vessel's hold, which was reportedly stuffed with bales of the drug.
Spanish Interior Minister Fernando Grande-Marlaska told reporters in Madrid that the seizure "was one of the biggest, not only nationally but internationally."
The boat was en route to Benghazi in Libya, and had set off from Sierra Leone's capital Freetown.
Read more: Woman stabbed to death in random attack at Spanish holiday hotspot
Read more: Virus-hit cruise ship denied entry to Cape Verde after three die in outbreak
A court order means the investigation is under tight legal secrecy.
Spain's close ties with Latin America and geographical proximity to Morocco, which is a top producer of cannabis, make it a popular entry point for drugs into Europe.
In January, Spanish police made their largest seizure of cocaine at sea yet from a vessel carrying almost 10 tons of the drug.
In February 2024 the UK's National Crime Agency seized what they claimed was a nationally record breaking amount of cocaine.
5.7 tonnes of cocaine was found in a container at Southampton Port in February, worth over £450 million.