Over 2 tonnes of cocaine seized in Portugal, 15 detained
Xinhua, September 11, 2015 Adjust font size:
Over two tonnes of cocaine were seized and 15 people detained on a fishing vessel in August, the Portuguese Judiciary Police revealed in a statement on Thursday.
The operation led to the dismantling of a major criminal organization which specialized in the international traffic of cocaine.
The seizure took place on Aug. 20 in Peniche city, some 100 km north of the capital city on the Portuguese coast, according to local media. The criminals were transporting the drug to a criminal organization in Galicia, Spain, some 550 km north of Lisbon.
The five people on board were detained, and following the police investigation, the Spanish authorities carried out a police operation in Galicia and detained 10 people who belonged to that criminal organization.
The operation involved 11 house searches, and the fishing boat transporting the cocaine was seized as well as a speedboat, around 70,000 euros in cash (78,510 U.S. dollars), 50 cartridges of 9 millimeters, as well as telecommunication equipment.
The people detained were aged between 25 and 75. Endit