UK Warship Seizes £33 Million Worth Of Illegal Drugs In Double Strikes Against Traffickers In The Middle East
In the wake of HMS Trent’s big blow to the Caribbean traffickers by seizing £17 million of illegal narcotics, the colleagues pounced almost half a world away in the waters of the Indian Ocean.
Heroin, crystal meth, and hashish were discovered by the sailors in Lancaster and Royal Marines – nearly four tons of illicit narcotics have been destroyed.
Operating under the banner of the Canadian-headed Combined Task Force 150, which is devoted to preventing criminal activity across over two million square miles of ocean in the Middle East, the frigate promptly intercepted two suspect vessels.
HMS Lancaster was on the first day of the security patrol following a duration of operational sea training and assurance when the Wildcat helicopter suddenly spotted a suspect vessel on a routine sortie.
That was the start of an eight-hour mission, during which Royal Marines from 42 Commando secured the vessel to permit the Royal Navy of Lancaster’s boarding team to search for illicit cargo.
An end-to-end search of the dhow found almost 100 packages – each had smaller parcels, found to comprise heroin, hashish, and crystal meth on subsequent testing on HMS Lancaster.
The crew members were still celebrating success when the Wildcat helicopter – from 815 Naval Air Squadron based at Somerset’s RNAS Yeovilton – launched on a dusk patrol for yet another sweep of the Indian Ocean. Once again, the aircrew spotted a suspicious dhow.
Then, Lancaster tracked the vessel during the night and struck it at dawn. Once again, the Commandos boarded and secured the dhow before the sailors joined them to conduct an extensive search.
This time, after more than six hours, they recovered 2.4 tons of hashish – bringing the two-day haul to 3.7 tons of unlawful drugs.
Cumulatively, the tally from the two drug hauls comes in at a little under £33 million per the National Crime Agency.
Grant Shapps, the Defence Secretary of the UK, hailed yet another success for the Navy in the international fight against trafficking.
The incredible achievements of the crew members of HMS Lancaster and the Royal Marine Commandos in the Indian Ocean indicate the Navy’s crucial role in policing the oceans.
Their effort and professionalism have dealt another huge and decisive blow to the criminal networks.
Following HMS Trent’s success in seizing a significant amount of drugs on the other side of the world, the Royal Navy continued heading the UK’s loyalty to disrupting drug smugglers all over the world.
Reference: royalnavy.mod.uk
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