Europe¡¯s first ¡®narco-submarine¡¯ caught off Spain with 3,000 kilos of cocaine

More information

Is the Spanish coast littered with single-use ¡®narco-submarines¡¯?

For Spanish narcotics officers, it had become something of a legend. But this past weekend, the legend became a reality.

On Sunday, the authorities intercepted the first ¡°narco-submarine¡± ever caught in European waters. The vessel was seized off the coast of Pontevedra, in Spain¡¯s northwestern Galicia region. It was carrying more than 3,000 kilograms of high-quality cocaine, according to sources familiar with the investigation.

Just the submarine itself must have cost around €2.5 million, said investigators

These sources added that the groups behind this shipment must be ¡°big, since just the submarine itself must have cost around €2.5 million.¡±

The 22-meter-long submersible vessel had made the ocean journey from Colombia. Two crew members, both from Ecuador, were arrested by a joint team from the Spanish National Police, the Civil Guard and the Coast Guard. A search is underway for a third individual who escaped.

The stories about the existence in European waters of ¡°narco-submarines such as the ones operating in the Pacific¡± had turned into something of a legend for Spanish narcotics officers. Since 2006, they had been hearing about drug-laden semi-submersibles making the trip to Spain and Africa. But no one had ever caught one.

An international tip-off put investigators on the trail

An international tip-off put investigators on the trail of a submarine carrying 3,000 kilos of cocaine from Colombia to Galicia, a region with a long history of drug-smuggling activity.

The vessel was intercepted off the coast of Ald¨¢n, within the municipal bounds of Cangas do Morrazo, in Pontevedra province. The same sources said that the submarine was made in Guyana in South America, and had been in operation ¡°for years.¡± It was able to make ¡°at least two trips a year.¡±

The operation has put a new spotlight on the drug trade in Galicia, which had been hard hit by numerous raids against its leaders. ¡°They¡¯ve taken advantage of the recent silence and worked discreetly while attention was focused on southern Spain,¡± said an investigator. This source added that the submarine ¡°probably works with two of the strongest drug-trafficking groups that still operate in Galicia.¡±

The existence of these vessels had become something of a legend for Spanish anti-narcotics officers

This is not the first time that anti-narcotics raids have targeted submarines. Pablo Escobar, the notorious Colombian drug lord, was said to own a remote-controlled, 11-meter submersible that he allegedly purchased from the Colombian army. The vessel was ultimately located in a river in the middle of the jungle.

Galicia has a long history as a drop-off point for drug shipments because of its curving coastline filled with secluded coves. The police have carried out numerous raids in the region.

In August 2006, a homemade narco-submarine was found in an estuary in Vigo, in Pontevedra province. It was loaded with fuel and the engine was turned on. Judicial authorities later handed down two-year prison sentences to six individuals for attempting to bring cocaine into Galicia.

English version by Susana Urra.