Three tonnes of cocaine seized from tugboat off Canary Islands
The Guardia Civil and Spain’s Customs Surveillance Service have intercepted a Cameroon-flagged tugboat carrying around 3,000 kilos of cocaine, in a coordinated international operation off the Canary Islands. The vessel, named Sky White, was stopped in international waters west of the archipelago after intelligence reports linked it to large-scale international drug trafficking.
The five crew members, four from Bangladesh and one from Venezuela, were arrested on suspicion of drug trafficking. The cocaine, divided into 80 bales of varying sizes, was hidden within the ship’s structure.
Authorities had been tracking the Sky White since summer 2024, suspecting it of operating as a “mother ship” for cocaine shipments across the Atlantic. The investigation, launched by France’s Customs Intelligence Directorate (DNRED) in cooperation with Moroccan authorities, revealed that the vessel regularly used the port of Dakhla to avoid European law enforcement. From there, it made several annual crossings to South America or the Caribbean, returning with significant loads of cocaine destined for Europe.
In Spain, the Guardia Civil and Customs Surveillance Service kept investigating, believing the tugboat was passing drugs to smaller boats near the Canary Islands or the Iberian Peninsula.
With assistance from the Spanish Armed Forces, a boarding team from the Guardia Civil’s Special Intervention Unit stormed the vessel from a Navy ship. The tug, measuring 22 metres in length, was found to be in poor condition and lacking adequate safety measures, posing a serious risk to the crew.
The Sky White was escorted to Tenerife, where the drugs were unloaded and the detainees were handed over to the authorities.
This seizure is part of ongoing efforts to combat cocaine trafficking along the so-called “Atlantic Route”, which is frequently used by yachts, fishing vessels, cargo ships, and high-speed boats transporting drugs from South America and the Caribbean for mid-ocean transfers before entering Europe.
Share:
