AUTHORITIES on the Costa del Sol have called for government assistance after defiant drug traffickers anchored their speedboats off a popular tourist hotspot during a violent sea storm on Sunday.
Shocking images show a group of nine ‘narco-boats’ brazenly floating off the coast of Agua Amarga, a renowned beauty spot in the municipality of Nijar, within Almeria’s Cabo de Gata Natural Park.
The speedboats sought shelter in Cala Muelle, a natural cove beside Agua Amarga’s old mineral pier, as powerful winter storm Emilia battered large stretches of southern Spain with heavy rain, strong winds and threatening thunderclouds.
Victor Vega Romero, spokesperson for Almeria’s Unified Association of Guardia Civil Officers (AUGC), said local authorities were powerless to intervene due to a “lack of resources.”
“We are short of 308 officers just at the rank-and-file level,” he said. “We need more resources and more units.”
“It is unacceptable for Cabo de Gata – the symbol of our province – to become a stopover, a refuelling station for drug traffickers and illegal immigration,” Vega added.
“They feel completely untouchable and remain there for long periods, while we do not have the means to act. If we approach them, they try to sink us.”
Eight speedboats initially formed the shocking ‘floating narco village’ in Cala Muelle on Saturday after being caught out by Storm Emilia, with a ninth vessel joining the group later on Sunday.
At least six boats were still visible off Agua Amarga early on Monday morning, according to reports.
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The incident comes amid growing concern over the increasingly aggressive tactics used by drug traffickers at sea.
Last year, in the port of Barbate near Cadiz, a narco-boat deliberately rammed a Guardia Civil patrol vessel during an attempted identification, killing two officers and injuring several others.
Earlier this month, a high-speed drug boat repeatedly attempted to evade Guardia Civil maritime units off the coast of Almeria, carrying out a series of dangerous manoeuvres during the pursuit.
Nijar’s mayor Josw Francisco Garrido, of the conservative People’s Party (PP), urged the central government in September to “do its job, increase the number of Guardia Civil officers, provide them with the necessary resources and operational protocols to tackle these criminal networks, and finally start taking Nijar seriously.”
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He said: “I have been mayor of Nijar for just over two years, and from day one I have been calling on the Spanish government – which is responsible for dealing with this issue – to put an end to the problem.”
“But unfortunately, Pedro Sanchez’s government cannot, or will not, put a stop to the criminal gangs that roam our beaches on a daily basis – gangs that traffic drugs and human beings and fuel large-scale illegal immigration,” he added.
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