The Indian Coast Guard and Directorate for Revenue Intelligence intercepted a ship bound for the Maldives smuggling 29.954 kg of hashish oil worth Rs. 33 crore. Three individuals were arrested. The operation involved a tractor transporting rock blocks from Tuticorin port, where hashish oil was transferred to a load barge at sea.
Twenty horses were found in terrible conditions on an illegal transport, suspected of being smuggled for fattening and slaughter despite a ban on live exports. Many were sick and weak, crammed into a lorry. Officials at Dover port discovered a downed foal unable to stand. Some horses had to be euthanized due to poor health.
The 21 crewmembers of the bulker Debi, detained for a year on charges of drug smuggling, have staged a protest to draw attention to their situation. Managed by Asia Pacific Shipping Co. of Hanoi, Vietnam, the vessel has been detained since December 2023 and officially placed under arrest in February 2024.
The Ministry of Internal Affairs of Turkey has pledged cooperation with Spanish and French authorities in investigating a Turkish-owned cargo ship involved in drug smuggling. The vessel, named Ras, was seized 130 miles from Lanzarote with 4,000 kilos of cocaine hidden on board. The interception revealed a sophisticated smuggling operation spanning multiple countries.[embed]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tp9H6k6jHao[/embed]
The Panama-registered, Vietnamese-owned bulker seized in India for suspected cocaine smuggling has left its crew stranded for months. The owners have not paid fees or posted a bond, leading to a court-ordered sale of the vessel to cover expenses. The crew’s fate remains uncertain as the owners fail to comply with court orders.
More than two months after detaining a Vietnamese-owned bulker and its crew in one of India’s largest cocaine seizures, a court has set terms for the release of the ship. The Debi (37,196 dwt) has been held along with its crew of 21 Vietnamese citizens approximately three miles off Paradip Port in northeast India since early December when the drugs were discovered despite reports of depression and frustration among the crew. The court has ordered the ship owner to post a $12 million bond and provide a $1.2 million bank guarantee before the vessel is released. Earlier reports were that the crew was living aboard the ship waiting for the court. The Indian customs authority had initially detained the crew for interviews after they discovered 22 kg of cocaine with a street value of $26 million hidden aboard the bulker. The media had written that the Indian authorities confiscated the crew’s cellphones and computers leaving them virtually isolated and unable to contact family at home in Vietnam. The vessel’s third engineer jumped into the harbor and was taken to a hospital with injuries to his hand. Media reports called it a possible suicide attempt. The initial investigation indicated that the cocaine was intercepted with India not the intended destination. The authorities believed it was going to be removed from the ship only when it reached Europe.
