Spanish Police Release Photos of Europe’s Largest Cocaine Seizure Off Canary Islands

Spanish authorities have seized 27 tonnes of cocaine from a vessel off the Canary Islands, marking the largest drug haul ever recorded in Europe. The operation resulted in the detention of the ship’s entire crew and the discovery of weapons on board.

The vessel, a 90-meter ship named the Arconian, was registered in the Comoros Islands. It was intercepted on May 1, 2026, by the Guardia Civil, an elite Spanish unit responsible for investigating serious crimes. The interception took place in the North Atlantic, in the waters between the coast of North Africa and the Canary Islands.

According to Spain’s High Court, officers discovered 27,215 kilograms of cocaine on the ship. The narcotics are valued at more than €812 million (£700 million). The Guardia Civil later released images showing the massive haul laid out on a dock in Madrid.

Crew Detentions and Vessel Route

A total of 23 crew members were detained following the boarding of the Arconian. Among those arrested were 17 individuals from the Philippines. Officers also discovered six crew members from the Netherlands and Suriname who were found hiding on the ship during the operation.

Investigation into the vessel’s movements revealed that the Arconian departed from Freetown, the capital of Sierra Leone, on April 22, 2026, before it was intercepted by Spanish authorities.

In addition to the cocaine, the Guardia Civil recovered firearms and ammunition from the ship. Detectives, who coordinated the operation with counterparts from the United States and the Netherlands, believe the drugs were intended to be smuggled into Spain using high-speed boats.

Legal Proceedings and Record-Breaking Scale

Spain’s High Court has ordered that the 23 crew members be held without bail. In its ruling, the court cited the seriousness of the alleged offenses, the risk of the suspects fleeing, and the likelihood of further criminal activity while the investigation remains ongoing.

The scale of the seizure surpasses previous drug busts in both European and national records. The previous European record was 22.7 tonnes of cocaine, seized in Hamburg, Germany, in June 2024.

The haul also significantly exceeds Spain’s previous national record. In 2025, Spanish authorities seized 11.8 tonnes of cocaine found in a shipment of Ecuadorian bananas at Algeciras, in southern Spain. The May 2026 seizure is more than twice the size of that previous record.