Spanish police have seized 30 tons of cocaine from a ship off the Canary Islands ​and detained its 23-member crew without bail in Europe’s ‌largest-ever bust of the drug, the High Court said on Thursday, more than doubling Spain’s previous record. The Comoro Island-flagged Arconian was ​intercepted by the Guardia Civil police force on ​May 1, with a cargo the court valued ⁠at more than 812 million euros ($956 million). The seizure ​dwarfs the 25 tons recovered by German police at ​the port of Hamburg in June 2024, previously Europe’s biggest, and is more than twice Spain’s own record of 13 tons, ​found in a shipment of Ecuadorean bananas at Algeciras ​last year. The operation, carried out with U.S. and Dutch authorities, will ‌be ⁠detailed by police on Friday. Investigators believe the cocaine was to be transferred at sea to high-speed boats and smuggled into mainland Spain. Firearms and ammunition were ​found on board, ​and six ⁠crew members were discovered hiding when officers boarded.

Full report : Spain seizes 30 tons of cocaine in record European haul, detains 23 crew.