Spain seizes record amount of cocaine in Atlantic Ocean, authorities say

Spanish authorities announced they have seized a record amount of cocaine in the Atlantic Ocean, intercepting a freighter in international waters.

The Civil Guard said the haul is believed to be the largest cocaine seizure in Spain.

The AUGC, the body’s main union, reported that between 30,000 and 45,000 kilograms were found after the ship was stopped.

The union described the operation as a “historic blow to drug trafficking.”

The freighter was intercepted on Friday off Spain’s Canary Islands, and around 20 people were arrested, the AUGC said.

Authorities said the vessel had departed Sierra Leone and was traveling to Libya.

For legal reasons, the Civil Guard did not provide additional details about the investigation.

Interior Minister Fernando Grande-Marlaska said the seizure is among the biggest “not only nationally but internationally.”

The Civil Guard later posted an image on X showing the drugs stored in the cargo hold of the intercepted vessel, saying “today history is being written” by its Maritime Service.

It added that the seizure—reported as the largest known interception—amounts to between 30,000 and 45,000 kg.

Although the ship was reportedly headed for Libya, AFP said the routes and patterns seen in earlier cases suggest the cocaine may have been intended to be transferred to smaller boats for distribution in Europe.

In January, Spanish authorities made their previous major at-sea cocaine seizure, recovering nearly 10 tonnes from a vessel.