Yesterday morning, the National Maritime Authority, the Portuguese Navy and the Portuguese Air Force once again carried out a joint operation in international waters, off the southern coast of mainland Portugal, which resulted in the arrest of three men on strong suspicion of committing drug trafficking.
An Air Force aircraft located "seven high-speed vessels suspected of transporting narcotics by sea", off the coast of the Algarve.
After starting a pursuit of the suspicious vessels, with the support of the air, the National Maritime Authority said it was only possible to intercept and seize two of the high-speed vessels, "with dozens of fuel drums on board".
The Maritime Authority also collected nine bales of narcotics from the water, totaling around 315kg of hashish.
During the operation, three men, aged between 40 and 60, were arrested on strong suspicion of committing the crime of drug trafficking.
Since January 27th, 9 high-speed boats and around 470 bales ( 16 tons ) of hashish have been seized, resulting in the arrest of 19 people.
Photo by National Maritime Authority
