Around two tonnes of hashish were seized on Thursday, 18 June, by the Coastal and Border Control Unit of Portugal's National Republican Guard (GNR) in Aljezur, in the Algarve. Three men were arrested.
According to information obtained by journalists at national newspaper Jornal de Notícias, GNR officers uncovered a drug offloading operation in the Portinho do Forno area. The narcotics were being transferred from a high-speed boat to commercial vehicles.
The vessel fled the scene and could not be intercepted. However, three men found at the site were arrested. Officers seized 56 packages of hashish, with the total weight yet to be officially determined but estimated at around two tonnes.
Authorities also recovered an automatic firearm, a Portuguese-registered light commercial vehicle, a Spanish-registered passenger car, and various items allegedly used in drug trafficking operations, including gloves and balaclavas.
The GNR also seized 150 jerry cans containing approximately 3,000 litres of petrol, which were reportedly being loaded from the vehicles onto the speedboat to fuel its return journey to North Africa, the region from which the hashish is believed to have originated.
The three suspects, aged between 28 and 43, are due to appear before a court on Friday.
The case has been referred to the Public Prosecution Service and the Judicial Police (PJ), which will take over the investigation.
Concerns are growing that this recent case is the latest indication that the country's southern shoreline is assuming greater significance as a gateway for drug trafficking into Europe.
For decades, Morocco has been the world's largest producer of cannabis resin, with traffickers relying on high-powered speedboats to ferry consignments across the Strait of Gibraltar.
Spanish authorities have tightened surveillance along the Andalusian coast, particularly around Cádiz, which has resulted in criminal networks seeming to have broadened their operations westwards, increasingly exploiting Portugal's quieter and less heavily policed coastline.
Under cover of darkness, boats cross from North Africa before rendezvousing with waiting vehicles on isolated beaches and coves across the Algarve. The drugs are swiftly transferred ashore, as in this case, whilst fuel carried in vans is loaded onto the vessels for the return journey.
Although Portugal is not replacing Spain as Europe's principal maritime gateway for hashish, security officials have acknowledged that the Algarve has become an increasingly attractive alternative landing point. Its proximity to Morocco and comparatively sparse coastal surveillance make it well suited to opportunistic traffickers.
Much of the cannabis resin landed in Portugal is believed to be destined not only for the domestic market but also for onward distribution across the continent.
The growing number of large seizures suggests that Portuguese authorities are intercepting more shipments, but also that traffickers are prepared to take greater risks. Whether that reflects tighter policing by Portuguese authorities, or a genuine shift in smuggling routes, remains a matter of debate.
Source: JN
Photo credit: GNR
