Three tonnes of cocaine with a street value of more than £500m has been discovered on a tugboat east of Aberdeen in the biggest drugs seizure in UK.
The cocaine was intercepted following a joint National Crime Agency (NCA), Border Force and Royal Navy operation in the North Sea last week.
Officers conducted a search of the tug and discovered the drugs, before the nine crew, all from Turkey, were arrested and charged with drug trafficking offences.
John McGowan, senior investigating officer for the NCA, based at the Scottish crime campus, Gartcosh, said: “The search of this vessel has been lengthy and painstaking, undertaken by hugely skilled specialists working in difficult conditions.
“The result is this massive discovery – believed to be the biggest single class A drug seizure on record in the UK, and likely to be worth several hundred million pounds.”
Acting on intelligence supplied by the NCA, the Ukrainian-owned Hamal was intercepted by the Royal Navy frigate HMS Somerset and Border Force cutter Valiant about 100 miles east of Aberdeen on Thursday 23 April. It was registered in Tanzania and had set sail from the Canary Islands.
The boat was taken to Aberdeen harbour where a search began, led by Border Force officers with operational support from Police Scotland.
The cocaine had an estimated weight in excess of three tonnes and is five times more valuable than the previous biggest UK drugs seizure, which was also made in Scotland.
The nine-man crew of the Hamal, all aged between 26 and 63, have been charged with drug trafficking offences and appeared before Aberdeen sheriff court on Monday 27 April where they were remanded in custody until their next appearance on Tuesday 5 May.
