Moroccan Drug Traffickers Shift to Sailboats in Spain’s Coastal Crackdown

"Putting an end to the hashish trade in the Campo de Gibraltar and, in general, in Andalusia, is impossible. Our work is to keep these organizations at a distance from our country, and to push them into their last stronghold," police sources told Eltaquigrafo. And to add: "We live a few kilometers from the world’s largest producer of hashish [Morocco], which is why criminal organizations choose Spain as their first destination to then transport the drug around the world".

To read: Spanish Civil Guard Busts Major Drug Trafficking Ring Using Helicopters and Trucks

The same sources claim that the "constant pressure" exerted on these drug traffickers has forced them "to adopt new strategies, new routes and new means of transport to escape the control of the anti-drug police." After several operations carried out in the Campo de Gibraltar and the Costa del Sol, which led to the seizure of large quantities of hashish as well as arrests, the traffickers had to turn to other cities like Seville or Huelva.

To read: Drug Smugglers Use Drones to Bypass Ceuta-Morocco Border, Authorities Intercept Narco-Drone

The new strategy of these drug traffickers is to transport the drug by boat or sailboat. The Spanish police recently dismantled a Bulgarian criminal organization that was trying to transport 30 tons of hashish on 12 sailboats from Morocco to Bulgaria. It has also noted a change in method among these drug traffickers who now lose more time at sea, "until they make sure the way is clear and they can land".

The Spanish police specify that they will continue this fierce fight against hashish traffickers in the Campo de Gibraltar, the Costa del Sol and the province of Malaga.