Walter Finch
DRUG traffickers deliberately torched and sank their yacht off of Tenerife after being cornered by Spanish customs patrol boats.
The two crew members, one French and one Dutch, took the desperate decision to destroy millions of euros worth of cocaine when they realised they had been intercepted by customs patrol boats.
One of the smugglers suffered serious burns in the blaze and had to be airlifted to hospital by rescue helicopter.
Despite the vessel’s destruction and the loss of most of the drug haul to the flames, the cops managed to recover 25 kilograms of cocaine before the yacht was completely consumed by fire.
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The dramatic sea chase unfolded after Spanish security forces received intelligence that a suspicious yacht near Tenerife was preparing to transfer a drug shipment to a speedboat for smuggling into Spain.
The operation was assisted by crucial intelligence provided by Britain’s National Crime Agency and the US Drug Enforcement Administration.
Spanish authorities described the boarding operation as ‘extremely dangerous’ for customs officers due to rough sea conditions and the fire deliberately started by the smugglers to destroy both the cocaine and their vessel.
“The rapid response of customs surveillance agents allowed them to initially extinguish the fire and complete the boarding of the vessel, as well as recover part of the merchandise before the fire reignited and ultimately destroyed most of the cocaine cargo and the boat that was transporting it,” officials said.
The vessel, a sloop named Lona, was completely destroyed in the blaze along with the majority of its illicit cargo.
The two crew members were arrested and brought to Santa Cruz de Tenerife on Friday along with the recovered drugs and the patrol boats that carried out the operation.
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