About 211 kilos of cocaine was found on board the gas carrier Hispania Spirit by Peruvian authorities during an inspection on September 8th while the ship was anchored in the Port of Pisco, Peru, the Peruvian navy informed.
The inspection was ordered by the port authorities as the local maritime information centre and the coast guard had already received reports of suspicious activity in the vicinity of the ship.
During the inspection, the coast guard found packages of suspicious origin in close proximity of the vessel’s rudder and a person of Venezuelan nationality that did not belong to the crew, the navy said.
Following testing of the found substance it was determined it tested positive for cocaine hydrochloride alkaloid.
The found material was seized and made available to the Public Prosecutor, whereas the Venezuelan citizen was arrested.
The Spanish-flagged liquefied natural gas (LNG) carrier was bound for the Mexican port of Manzanillo. According to Marine Traffic’s vessel tracking data from September 3rd, the vessel’s last port was Port of Fujairah, United Arab Emirates (UAE) from where Hispania Spirit left for PERU LNG export terminal in Pampa Melchorita, located about 170 kilometers south of Lima.
The 79,363 DWT tanker, built in 2002, is owned and managed by Teekay Shipping Glasgow, the United Kingdom.
World Maritime News Staff