The Royal Navy frigate HMS Lancaster successfully interdicted a drug-running boat in Middle East waters and seized more than 1.5 tonnes of illegal narcotics worth £30 million (US$40 million).
After secretly shadowing the suspect through the Arabian Sea for more than 24 hours, Lancaster deployed a Wildcat helicopter and two small fast boats with Royal Marine Commando boarding teams to bring the dhow’s voyage to a halt.
With the helicopter providing overwatch, the commando boats closed on the suspect vessel in a pincer movement.
Once aboard, the commandos discovered 80 packages containing illicit narcotics. These were then transferred to Lancaster for testing to confirm their contents.
The haul came to 1,000 kg of heroin, 660 kg of hashish, and six kg of amphetamine – worth an estimated £30 million on UK streets.
It is the second bust in three months for Lancaster, which is based in Bahrain and is attached to a New Zealand-led international task force spread across the Indian Ocean hunting down illegal activity.
In March, the frigate's crew recovered packages that smugglers had attempted to dispose of in the Northern Arabian Sea. The New Zealand Defence Force said that the estimated street value of the seized narcotics is equivalent to US$191 million.