A Royal Navy vessel stopped and set fire to a boat caught smuggling £24million worth of cocaine in the Caribbean.
HMS Medway pursued the boat after it was spotted near the Dominican Republicalongside a U.S. Coast Guard law enforcement detachment and accompanying aircraft.
The boat is believed to have come from South America, using a well-known drug trafficking route.
Once arrested, officers boarded the boat and found several large packages of drugs weighing over 400 kg.
Three crew members of the boat were arrested.
The boat was later destroyed – a way to prevent it being used to transport more drugs and also a way of practice for Medway’s gunnery team.
The ship sunk by the weapons systems of HMS Medway. Picture: MOD
Commander Chris Hollingworth of HMS Medway said: “Everyone involved demonstrated their professionalism during a difficult pursuit.
“It might be the first, but we’re going to make sure it’s not the last, and I speak for everyone here in saying it has galvanized our determination to succeed.
The drug boat is engulfed in flames. Picture: MOD
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“Together with our partners aboard Medway and in the skies above us, we are able to punch a hole in the supply chain and disrupt the movement of these harmful drugs before they have their way. chance to harm people here and abroad,” said Cdr Hollingworth.
“I am exceptionally proud of the collective effort of my ship’s crew and our colleagues at the United States Coast Guard for their proactive attitude and total commitment to the task.”
