Costa Blanca

Blocks of cocaine thrown into the water between Ibiza and Alicante

Officials from the Tax Agency have seized 34 kilos of cocaine that had been thrown into the Ibiza Channel, in the waters between the eastern end of the island and Cabo de la Nao, to be collected at sea by an organisation dedicated to drug trafficking.

In a statement, the Tax Agency explained on Wednesday that with this intervention, which took place on January 20, “an attempted shipment was thwarted” since the transfer of the drugs was avoided using the ‘drop off’ method, which consists of throwing the merchandise from a merchant ship so that it is picked up by smaller vessels, near the destination country.

The Palma-based Customs Surveillance patrol boat Paiño discovered the drugs when it was sailing on a preventive service on a regular maritime route.

The agents observed two packages floating in the sea tied by a rope, which were adrift, and they picked them up from the water, discovering that they were wrapped in black plastic and duct tape, and that inside they contained 30 plastic-wrapped packages.

The packages tested positive for cocaine in the ‘narcotest’ and the packages had a gross weight of 34 kilos, so their sale on the black market would have exceeded 2 million euros.

The Tax Agency explains that the ‘drop-off’ technique consists of “corrupt personnel” from the crew of merchant ships that make an ordinary route “throwing floating packages with narcotics into the sea”, which are later recovered from the sea by some organization based in the areas where the drugs are destined. It also highlights that in August 2018, 334 kilos were seized on board the motor vessel ‘HCH-X’, whose five crew members had recovered the bales from the sea after they had been thrown from the merchant ship Erato as it passed through waters near Ibiza.

The Balearic patrol boats Paiño and Colimbo IV participated in the air-naval operation, along with a Customs Surveillance helicopter. The circumstances surrounding the discovery have not allowed any arrests to be made, so the investigation remains open. The intervention was carried out in accordance with the guidelines of the Sub-directorate of Customs Surveillance Operations for 2025, which establishes operations focused on intensifying the fight against maritime trafficking and the protection of commercial traffic, the statement added.

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Related Topics:Alicante Cocaine Crime Police Tax

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Costa Blanca

21 expensive cars that were stolen in the U.S. were found Valencia port

Together with the US Container Security Initiative, the Guardia Civil and the Tax Agency found 21 high-end cars that were stolen in the U.S. and were on their way to Africa in the port of Valencia. The cars, which were worth a total of €1.1 million, were reported stolen and were being moved in containers.

The cars were stolen in the U.S. and were on their way to different places in Africa, stopping in Valencia’s port. Risk analysis units made up of Guardia Civil and Tax Agency officers were able to find several packages that might not have had the goods that were claimed to have been inside.

With the help of the information gathered, it was confirmed that stolen cars that had been in Valencia on their way to the United States had actually arrived. The groups that ship stolen cars either traded legally declared cars for stolen ones or directly declared the stolen cars as other goods, like furniture or mattresses.

In the past few weeks, 21 vehicles have been found and will be sent back to their home countries to be given to their original owners.

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Costa Blanca

14 immigrants were saved on a boat 45 miles off the coast of Alicante

On Wednesday, 2nd April, the Maritime Rescue ship Salvamar Leo saved 14 immigrants who were travelling in a boat about 45 miles from Alicante.

In the middle of the afternoon on Wednesday, Maritime Rescue sent out its Helimer 223 helicopter and the Salvamar Leo, which is based in Alicante, to save the people on a small boat.

Their journey began on the Salvamar Leo, which took them to the Temporary Assistance Centre for Foreigners in the port of Alicante. There, the Red Cross took care of them.

The Red Cross says that all of the refugees they saved were men, and two of them were younger than 15 years old. They were all healthy after being treated.

The National Police took over the refugees after getting help from the Red Cross. They are now trying to find the boat’s captain so they can arrest him, as is normal in these situations.

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Costa Blanca

Dénia wrestler arrested in connection with a network that smuggled 300 kilos of cocaine from Ecuador

The National Police’s Drugs and Organised Crime Unit arrested a famous mixed martial arts (MMA) fighter from Dénia. He was part of a gang that was partly broken up in August over a shipment of 300 kg of cocaine from Ecuador that came into the port of Valencia. The fighter from Dénia is one of five people who were caught by police. Along with nine other gang members who were already in jail at the time, they are now in jail.

The man who was arrested in Dénia is thought to be the trusted man of the gang’s leader, who is also an MMA fighter, and the person who is said to have worked as a go-between in the operation.

Levante-EMV also says that the broken-down network is linked to another shipment of 490 kg of cocaine that came into the port of Valencia in April of last year.

The five people who were just caught went before Valencia’s Investigative Court No. 20 yesterday, April 3rd.