A Royal Navy patrol ship has seized £40 million of cocaine from a speedboat in the Caribbean.
Royal Marines and US Coast Guard personnel on HMS Trent intercepted the vessel carrying 506kg of Class A narcotics south of the Dominican Republic earlier this month.
The bust was the sixth made by the Royal Navy vessel this year, bringing the total amount of drugs seized to £551.5 million.
HMS Trent was alerted to a speedboat suspected to be smuggling cocaine around 120 nautical miles south of the Dominican Republic on Aug 8.
The alleged smugglers threw the cargo overboard during the operation, but all the contraband was recovered. Three people were arrested and handed over to the United States authorities for prosecution.
Footage shows several Armed Forces personnel being dispatched on smaller speedboats to catch the boat, and later fishing contraband out of the water.
Marines and US Coast Guards on small boat pursuing the alleged smugglers’ speedboat
The Marines from HMS Trent fished packages of cocaine dumped from the speedboat from the water – LPhot Matt Bradley/Royal Navy
The alleged smugglers are later filmed being escorted on to HMS Trent with their hands held above their heads.
A flow of approximately 500 tons of cocaine travels from South America into the Caribbean and on to the US before crossing the Atlantic to feed an ever-growing market in Europe.
While the recent seizure was believed to have been destined for the US, previous shipments have made it across to the UK, and there has been a noticeable shift in activity this year to supply a European market.
Luke Pollard, the Armed Forces minister, said: “This recent operation highlights the Royal Navy’s vital role in maintaining maritime security and upholding international law in the region.
“We are sending a clear message to drug traffickers that nowhere is safe and we will disrupt and dismantle their operations wherever they are in the world.”
One of the alleged smugglers from the boat is taken on to HMS Trent with his hands above his head – LPhot Matt Bradley/Royal Navy
The ship will continue to patrol the Caribbean to stem the flow of illegal cargo through the region, as well as to act as a reassuring presence for the British Overseas Territories during hurricane season, which ends in November.
HMS Trent has seized 6,995 kilograms of drugs in 2024, working with the US Coast Guard and the Joint Interagency Task Force South based in Florida, which monitors illegal drug trafficking.
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Publish date : 2024-08-24 19:04:00
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