Suspects narrowly escape Narco-Sub sinking off Spain

Spanish customs have intercepted another semi-submersible transoceanic vessel in the Atlantic, rescuing and arresting four suspects, who sank their own vessel as authorities approached.

On June 24, the Spanish Tax Administration's Customs Surveillance Service and the US DEA detected the semi-submersible approximately 250 nautical miles off the coast of Cádiz. In collaboration with the Spanish Civil Guard and National Police, the customs agency vessel Fulmar intercepted the ship.

However, the semi-sub's crew decided to sink their own boat rather than hand it over to the authorities. They opened its floodgates and the water flooded within minutes. They went on deck to safety and, as Fulmar arrived, the semi-submersible sank under their feet and headed to the bottom.

????Intercepted in the water #Atlantic UN #semisumergible that is heading towards the costa peninsula

????Detained the 4 tripulants

????According to investigators, the vessel has characteristics similar to those of other “narco-vessels”

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– National Police (@policia) June 26, 2024

The crew members were all Colombian nationals and the design of the 20-meter semi-submarine was similar to other transatlantic drug trafficking vessels seized in Spain in 2019 and 2023. Due to the nature of the ship, authorities suspect it was carrying a cargo of cocaine from South America.

The area around the Canary Islands is a hotbed of ship-to-ship transfers between cocaine smuggling boats. On June 22, a few days earlier, the Fulmar intercepted a RHIB loaded with cocaine near the island of La Palma. The narcoboat crew threw their cargo overboard during a six-hour chase, and Fulmar recovered a total of approximately 900 kilos. The boat was found abandoned on Tazacorte beach the next day.