The Civil Guard has confirmed the seizure of six tons of cocaine and the arrest of three people as part of an anti-drug trafficking operation in Huelva. The ongoing operation may lead to further arrests and related actions.
The operation was conducted with great discretion from its outset, involving a significant deployment of resources both offshore and at the port of Huelva for the transfer, unloading, and safekeeping of the illicit substance.
The haul was intercepted south of Cape St. Vincent, in Atlantic waters, aboard a large drug boat. This semi-rigid vessel, approximately 14 meters long, was equipped with four 300-horsepower outboard motors, designed for high-speed and long-range voyages.
The operation continued on Thursday morning at the Muelle de Levante in the port of Huelva, where the judicial commission in charge of the investigation, along with Civil Guard agents, proceeded to search and inspect the intercepted vessel. The operation was carried out under strict security measures, with armed personnel wearing bulletproof vests and balaclavas, and with the three detainees present during the proceedings.
On Wednesday, the illicit cargo was unloaded at the maritime base of the Civil Guard's Maritime Service, also at the Muelle de Levante. There, the bales were unloaded by crane, displayed, and photographically documented by the operational personnel before being transported in vehicles under heavy police escort, in a logistically complex operation.
“"The operation is part of Plan Carteia, the special anti-drug trafficking initiative carried out by the Armed Institute in southern Spain."
According to Luis Ortega, Brigadier General and head of the IV Zone of the Civil Guard in Andalusia, this operation is part of Plan Carteia, a special initiative against drug trafficking in southern Spain. Ortega noted that the investigation remains open and further actions are not ruled out.
If the total volume seized is definitively confirmed, this haul would represent the largest cocaine seizure to date in the province of Huelva, surpassing the more than five tons recently apprehended by the National Police on a farm in Gibraleón. This fact reaffirms the province's position as one of the main entry points for drugs into Europe.
