Spanish officials announced on Monday that they had found seven tons of cocaine hidden in maritime freight containers buried under a farm and arrested three suspected traffickers. Police released footage of the seizure, which shows police digging into the earth and finding hundreds of parcels carrying the accused narcotics.
The Civil Guard police said they initiated the investigation on Friday after discovering two suspicious speedboats near the mouth of the Guadalquivir River.
The boats were followed to a remote estate in the town of Coria del Rio, south of Seville, where the suspects buried the cocaine in two subterranean containers.
The Civil Guard, which claimed it was the greatest cocaine seizure carried into southern Spain by motorboat, shared a video on social media of police finding the supposed contraband.
They said they impounded three weapons, including an AK-47 assault rifle, and two stolen vehicles.
Spain is one of the main gateways to Europe for international drug traffickers due to its proximity to Morocco, a top cannabis producer, and close ties with former colonies in Latin America.
Last month, Spanish authorities arrested one of its top police officers after 20 million euros were found hidden in the walls of his house, as part of a probe into the country’s largest-ever cocaine bust.
In July, Spain participated in a takedown of a major network transporting Latin American cocaine into Europe by boat, which involved 50 arrests across eight countries. Twenty-six of the detainees were arrested in Spain.
