Spanish Customs intercepted the 30-metre Italian fishing vessel Santa Rita Terza about 138 miles south-east of Cartagena on the night of Saturday 24 January 2015.[1][2] Aerial units working with French Customs had spotted the trawler 65 nautical miles south of Almería that afternoon, and the patrol vessels Arao and Alca boarded it that night.[1][2]
Officers found about 8,700 kg of hashish resin in 292 bales on the deck and in the hold, valued at up to 13.6 million euros.[1][2] The agency said the trawler had acted as a mother ship, taking the bales aboard from two inflatable boats and still stowing them when boarded.[1][2]
The eight crew were arrested: seven Italian nationals, one with dual Italian and Tunisian nationality, and one Egyptian national.[1][2] The vessel was towed to Cartagena, and the detainees, vessel and drugs were to be brought before the Cartagena duty court.[1]
The agency called the boarding Operation Ramses, the ninth large hashish seizure on the Eastern Mediterranean route since May 2013, with more than 100 tonnes seized on that route in all.[1][2] It said trafficking groups were increasingly using European-flagged fishing vessels to arouse less suspicion.[1][2]
