MADRID, May 19 (Xinhua) -- The Spanish National Police and Civil Guards have intercepted and seized a fishing boat carrying an estimated 15 tonnes of hashish, the Spanish Interior Ministry informed on Saturday.
The fishing boat, which was illegally sailing under a Maltese flag, when it was spotted by a Spanish patrol boat 110 nautical miles off the eastern Spanish coast in a joint operation with Portuguese, Italian and Dutch authorities in the early hours of Friday morning, according to the ministry's press release.
The four-man crew, consisting of three Dutch citizens and a Bulgarian, were arrested and the ship was taken to the port of Alicante in southeast Spain.
Located on the southwestern corner of Europe, Spain is less than 20 miles away from the coast of North Africa, which makes it a habitual entry point for hashish smuggled from Africa, as well as cocaine introduced from Latin America.
