A cargo ship carrying drugs!

On July 19, Italian police found a record 5.3 tonnes of cocaine aboard the bulk carrier PLUTUS in a major operation in the Mediterranean. The ship was caught red-handed trying to transfer cocaine to Italian drug traffickers. Police arrested five suspects from different countries, while 15 crew members of the bulk carrier were also arrested.

Dpa, citing the Italian Financial Supervisory Authority as its source, reported that the seized goods were estimated to be worth 850 million euros. It was the largest seizure of cocaine ever made in Italy.

Police said in a press release that during reconnaissance, the task force spotted a trawler sailing off the coast of Calabria approaching a commercial vessel, the bulk carrier PLUTUS, which had been under surveillance for several days. In the early hours of the 19th, investigators noticed that as the fishing boat approached, the merchant ship personnel brought many packages onto the deck and threw them into the water. The crew of the fishing boat then retrieved the packages.

The police took immediate action, quickly intercepted the fishing boat returning to the territorial waters, and found a large amount of drugs in a hidden room of the fishing boat. At the same time, police vessels pursued the merchant ship, which was trying unsuccessfully to return to Turkey. Fifteen crew members, including the Ukrainian captain (two Ukrainians, eight Turks and five Azerbaijanis) were arrested and are currently being escorted by a police vessel to the port of Palermo.

The five suspected detainees include an Italian, two Tunisians, a Frenchman and an Albanian. The seizure was ordered by the Anti-Mafia Guidance Bureau in Palermo, Italy, which said it was the most important cocaine bust nationwide in Italy and one of the most important worldwide.

Both ships were detained, and the bulk carrier PLUTUS remained at sea until 21 July, when it was transferred to Termini Imerise, northern Sicily, on 22 July. On July 22, the search was still underway and more cocaine could be found. The ship was on a voyage from Santo Domingo, Dominica, with stops in Trinidad and Tobago and Las Palmas before heading to Turkey.

PLUTUS (IMO: 9132519), 13,902 gross tonnage, was built in 1998 under the flag of Palau under the ISM management of DEMETER SHIPPING SA-MAI.

Dpa said drug traffickers often attempt to smuggle drugs through the Mediterranean. In recent months, Italy’s financial police have seized several smuggling cases involving several tons of drugs.