According to media reports, the Spanish police have made the first discovery of a large drug submarine in Europe. The ship, which is a good 20 meters in length, was intercepted on Sunday off the coast of the Galicia region in the northwest of the country, a regional police spokesman confirmed. After the discovery, the crew deliberately set the submarine to ground. Only after the recovery there is more information.
Spanish media reported, citing the authorities, that two members of the crew had been arrested. The men from Ecuador had rescued themselves floating on the shore. A third man had managed to escape.
The submarine probably came from Colombia and according to initial estimates, has about three tons of cocaine worth 100 million euros on board, reported the regional newspaper "La Voz de Galicia". The coup was the Spanish police in collaboration with the authorities in Colombia, it said.
Galicia is one of the major cocaine trading centers in Europe. Different clans supply drugs from the traditionally poor region across Europe - mostly from South America. Clan leaders are often revered by the people as heroes who provide jobs and better living conditions.