- Spanish police arrest 30 in cocaine bust operation.
- Seize almost 2.5 tonnes of cocaine hidden onboard.
- Criminal network used young swimmers to conceal drugs.
When Policía Nacional officers discovered 88 kg of cocaine in a car in the southern Spanish town of Mijas in October 2024, the 15-month investigation got underway. The narcotics led them to three gangs, one of which was a Balkan cartel, who collaborated to transport massive amounts of cocaine from Colombia into Spain.
“The gangs used the so-called ‘monkey’ technique to get the shipments of cocaine into maritime containers that were being transported on container ships,”
the force said in a statement on Thursday.
“The drug-trafficking technique involves using youngsters from poor backgrounds who are good swimmers to get the drugs on to ships while they’re at sea.
Members of the same organisation then headed to Spain in order to get to the containers by intercepting the ships carrying them before they reached the strait of Gibraltar.”
One such attempt was foiled in the middle of last year when a ship headed for the port of Cádiz reported to the maritime rescue agency that it had discovered stowaways on its deck. As a result, a container containing 1.4 tonnes of cocaine was seized. It found out that the stowaways were three individuals assigned to retrieve the contraband before running away.
The drugs were subsequently transferred by road to other European nations after being concealed in towns and villages along the Gulf of Cádiz.
During the raid, police found eight luxury cars, boarding ladders, maritime equipment, jewelry valued at €100,000, more than €166,000 (£144,000) in cash and watches, and 2,475 kg of cocaine and different assault weapons.
On Monday the Policía Nacional announced its largest-ever seizure of cocaine at sea after officers found almost 10 tonnes of the drug hidden amid a cargo of salt on a merchant ship off the Canary Islands.
How did the swimmers recruit and transport the drugs to ships?
The felonious network signed youthful individuals from low- income families who professed insensibility, exploiting their athletic capacities and profitable despair for the dangerous" monkey fashion." These rookies entered cocaine packages via lower support vessels in transnational waters, far from plages.
Retrieval brigades in brisk boats also interdicted near the Gibraltar Strait, planting fortified divers or hitchhikers to prize the weight before harborage entry.
rookies faced drowning, hypothermia, and crew competitions, with police noting previous Cadiz hitcher cautions leading to the 2.4- tonne seizure across 30 apprehensions. This system finessed vessel reviews while maximizing loads from Colombian origins.