They transported nearly 2.700 kilograms of cocaine on a sailboat that, after leaving Brazil for Europe, was boarded in international waters near the Canary Islands.
There are a total of six detainees, two of them on the high seas and the other four in Serbia where the leader of the criminal organization was located.
15 house searches have been carried out in Serbia, with 550.000 euros in cash, two high-end vehicles and several luxury watches seized
Agents of the National Police have carried out an operation together with the Serbian police, coordinated by EUROPOL and with the collaboration of the Spanish Navy and the police of Portugal, Slovenia, Croatia, Brazil, Poland, France, the DEA of the United States. United States and the MAOC-N (Maritime Analyst and Operations Center Narcotics), has allowed the dismantling of a criminal organization of citizens of Balkan origin allegedly dedicated to the introduction and distribution of cocaine in Europe from South America by sea. Specifically, they were intercepted transporting almost 2.700 kilograms of cocaine aboard a sailboat in international waters near the Canary Islands. The two crew members were arrested, and later the leader and three other members of the organization in Serbia, with a total of six arrests.
The investigation began at the beginning of 2022 when, thanks to the collaboration between the Spanish and Serbian police, under the coordination of EUROPOL, various information was received from the Slavic authorities indicating that an important criminal organization in that country was preparing a cocaine transport operation by sea.
The researchers detected that the members and the environment of the organization were constantly moving. In this way, they found out that the alleged leader traveled to Spain on several occasions, using a false identity as a Croatian citizen, trying to avoid the international requirements that were imposed on him.
As the investigations advanced, it was proven that in Croatia there were meetings of the organization with the Latin American suppliers of the drug, and in Slovenia those who would later be the crew of the boat used to transport the narcotic were identified, in addition to confirming that several Members of the organization traveled on several occasions to the Cape Verde archipelago and to Latin American countries such as Colombia and Brazil.
Collision on the high seas
In June of this year, it was possible to identify a 22-meter-long sailboat that, a month later, set sail from Brazil and entered the Atlantic about 100 miles, at which time it is believed that it loaded the narcotic. Once it was certified that the vessel headed to Europe, the necessary mechanisms were activated through CITCO to be able to board it.
With all the information obtained, a GEO assault team, aboard a Spanish Navy ship, set sail from Las Palmas de Gran Canaria and boarded the sailboat during the early hours of August 24, about 700 miles to the west. from the Canary Islands. After the boarding, the two crew members of the boat were detained and nearly 2.700 kilograms of cocaine were seized, which were transported in a total of 89 sports bags. Several state-of-the-art GPS devices and a phone with satellite coverage could also be recovered.
After the operation, the boat was towed by the Spanish ship until due to its condition it sank, showing how criminal organizations use so-called last trip boats, maximizing profits since they are acquired for a lower price.
Subsequently, in a coordinated manner, the Serbian police authorities arrested the alleged leader and three other members of the Balkan criminal organization in the country, carrying out a total of 15 home searches and seizing 550.000 euros in cash, two high-end vehicles and several luxury watches. The investigation currently remains open and more arrests are not ruled out.
