Spanish authorities said on Sunday that they had intercepted 6.5 tonnes of cocaine and detained nine individuals after a US intelligence lead prompted a raid on a vessel near the Canary Islands several days earlier.
According to a Spanish National Police statement, the drugs were concealed in the ship’s hold. The vessel, which was sailing under a Tanzanian flag, had set off from Panama and was bound for Vigo in the north-western region of Galicia in Spain.
The operation was made possible thanks to key ‘information’ supplied by the US Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), the federal agency tasked with combating international narcotics trafficking, police said.
Spain remains one of Europe’s principal entry points for cocaine, a consequence of its strong historical and commercial ties with Latin America – where most of the drug is produced – and its strategic position on the continent’s south-western edge.
In October last year, Spanish police recorded their largest-ever cocaine bust when roughly 13 tonnes were found hidden among a shipment of bananas arriving at the southern port of Algeciras. ALSO READ: Spanish police seize record cocaine haul in banana shipment from Ecuador.
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Agentes del #GEO han abordado un buque mercante 🚢 a 600 millas de las #IslasCanarias con el apoyo de @Armada_esp
— Policía Nacional (@policia) October 26, 2025
La requisa realizada por agentes de @policia de la #UDYCO calculan que podría transportar alrededor de 6.500 kilos de cocaína
⛓️9 detenidos
Con colaboración @DEAHQ pic.twitter.com/TiTZLEH3kQ
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