Spanish authorities have intercepted a freighter in the Atlantic Ocean carrying between 30,000 and 45,000 kilograms of cocaine — what is believed to be the largest such seizure in Spanish history. The Civil Guard's main union, the AUGC, described the operation as a "historic blow to drug trafficking," while Interior Minister Fernando Grande-Marlaska called it "one of the biggest seizures, not only nationally but internationally."

The vessel, named the Arconian and sailing under a Comoros flag, departed Freetown, the capital of Sierra Leone, on 22 April and was bound for Benghazi, Libya. It was intercepted off the coast of Dakhla, in the Western Sahara, before being escorted by maritime police to Gran Canaria, the largest of Spain's Canary Islands, an archipelago situated in the Atlantic off the northwest African coast. All 23 crew members were arrested. The cargo had been concealed behind a sealed metal wall leading to a narrow corridor packed with bales of cocaine, and was guarded by six armed sentries aboard the vessel.

Although the ship was headed toward Libya, authorities believe — based on patterns observed in previous operations — that the drugs were intended to be transferred onto smaller vessels for onward distribution across Europe. Dutch newspaper De Telegraaf reports that Dutch nationals are among those arrested, and that Interpol has linked the operation to Jos L., a Dutch drug trafficker also known as "Bolle Jos." He has been convicted in both the Netherlands and Belgium for large-scale drug smuggling and has been on international wanted lists for several years. Dutch prosecutors have offered a €200,000 reward for information leading to his arrest, and footage that emerged last year suggested he may be based in Sierra Leone.

The seizure dwarfs Spain's previous record at sea, set in January, when authorities confiscated nearly 10 tonnes of cocaine from a single vessel. The Civil Guard has declined to provide further operational details, citing legal reasons. The scale of the haul underscores the continued use of West African transit routes by major drug trafficking networks targeting European markets.