Three Arrested After Attempted Cocaine Theft at Algeciras Port

Spanish authorities have arrested three people after two suspects boarded a container ship at the Port of Algeciras disguised as port workers and attempted to remove 50 kg of cocaine, while a third accomplice waited nearby on a stolen jet ski. Civil Guard officers spotted the jet ski manoeuvring suspiciously close to the vessel during cargo operations and began monitoring the three individuals before intervening. The two men, dressed in clothing resembling that of port staff, had boarded the ship and allegedly pulled two backpacks from one of the shipping containers, later hiding them after noticing the authorities' presence. Officers subsequently located the backpacks during a search, finding 50 packages of cocaine weighing a combined 50 kg, which Spain's Tax Agency estimated to be worth more than 1.5 million euros ($1.7 million) on the street. The operation was conducted by the Risk Analysis Unit (ULAR), comprising Customs Surveillance officials from the Tax Agency and Civil Guard officers, with support from the Civil Guard's Maritime Service. A Provincial Maritime Service vessel intercepted the third suspect on the jet ski before he could flee; investigators later determined the watercraft had been stolen hours earlier in La Línea de la Concepción. All three suspects were arrested and handed over to judicial authorities along with the seized drugs and evidence, and a judge ordered them remanded in custody. The Port of Algeciras saw a separate seizure of 50 kg of cocaine in February 2025, when drugs were found inside a container that had arrived from Guayaquil, Ecuador.