Major blow to drug smuggling on the Costa del Sol as police foil loading of petrol onto vessel used to refuel narco-boats
National Police officers have arrested seven men, one of them a minor, and seized 127 containers of petrol on a popular beach early this Tuesday morning
Police on the Costa del Sol have arrested several people, including a minor who were trying to load fuel onto a vessel used for refuelling narco-boats on the Guadalmina beach in San Pedro Alcántara (Marbella) early this Tuesday morning. The suspects' intention was to supply high-powered fast boats responsible for hashish and cocaine transport operations between Morocco and Spain, according to the authorities.
The police were deployed around 6am, after receiving a call from a security guard who reported witnessing a van performing suspicious manoeuvres near the beach. Upon arrival, specialist UPR officers saw the van and a motorbike with the registration number covered. The motorbike was heading towards the beach.
More than a dozen individuals were on the sand, unloading containers of what appeared to be fuel and loading them onto a semi-rigid boat.
The police called for reinforcements and stormed the beach in order to thwart the operation. Some of the suspects tried to escape, either on foot or in the van, but the police managed to detain them. Among them was a 17-year-old youth.
Upon searching the van, the police found that it was carrying 127 cylinders of fuel, presumably destined to supply narco-boats. The Malaga provincial police station told SUR that seven people have been arrested.
