The Spanish authorities have dealt international drug trafficking a major blow with the interception of a small yacht carrying a large cargo of cocaine in waters off the islands.
The single-mast sloop boat was intercepted 90 kilometres off Tenerife by two Spanish Customs patrol vessels after intelligence was received from international law enforcement agencies that it was transporting the cocaine from South America and was preparing to offload batches onto a smaller boat for transfer to the Canaries.
Realising they were about to be intercepted, the 2-man crew of the yacht began to dispose of the drugs and took the bizarre step of setting the yacht on fire, hoping to sink it with the evidence.
However, despite the rough sea conditions customs officers managed to put out the flames sufficiently to board the yacht, where they recovered 25 kilos of high-grade cocaine in the operation, which was carried out jointly by Spanish police, the Civil Guard and Customs.
One of the crew members suffered burns in the fire and had to be evacuated by a Sea Rescue helicopter and flown to hospital.
The two men, from France and the Netherlands, were arrested and taken to Santa Cruz along with the drugs seized.
