The operation, carried out by the Cadiz Provincial Maritime Service, is part of ongoing efforts to combat drug trafficking and its logistics within the Bay of Cadiz. Following an overnight surveillance mission, officers located eight fiber-optic inflatable boats carrying 550 fuel canisters, a practice commonly referred to as 'petaqueo'.

The Guadalete River has become a hotspot for this illicit activity, which emerged in 2018 following government restrictions on drug boats. This parallel industry allows traffickers to refuel high-speed vessels in winding areas, effectively bypassing police pressure along the coastline.

According to reports from the National Security Department, there has been a significant increase in fuel seizures across the provinces of Cadiz and Huelva. The high profitability of this trade, where fuel prices skyrocket once delivered to drug boats, continues to drive the proliferation of these small supply vessels.