Moldovan-flagged ship with 1.4 tonnes of cocaine on board detained in Spain

Chisinau, 24 October /MOLDPRES/- A ship under the flag of Moldova with 1.4 tonnes of cocaine on board was detained this weekend in Spain, near the Canary Islands. The Breath model tug has been provisionally registered in the State Register of Ships of Moldova, and until the incident was under registration of documents for permanent record.
Giurgiulesti Port Captaincy head Victor Andrusca said that the ship belonged to a company from Georgia and had a crew of citizens of Turkey, Bulgaria, Ukraine and Georgia.
"At the time of provisional registration of the ship, the competent authorities verified its history, the identity of the shipowner and, due to lack of suspicion, the vessel was accepted for provisional registration, with the documents being examined before permanent registration by the competent bodies of Moldova. In accordance with international treaties in the field of shipping, in the case of criminal offenses on board, the law of the coastal state, the flag state or the state of which the crew holds is applied. In that case, the vessel was in the territorial waters of Spain (the Canary Islands), which in the given situation is considered to be a coastal state and flag state, respectively, in which case the legislation of that state will be applied," he said.
He noted that the Giurgiulesti port management is in contact with the Spanish authorities, the owner and the operator of the ship. "The Republic of Moldova will not be subject to any international sanctions as a result of the detention of the ship in Spain, due to the fact that the flag state does not hold any responsibility for the commercial activity of the shipowners," he said.
He also noted that the registration of the ship detained in Spain will be suspended and the vessel will be removed from the state register of ships of Moldova.
According to the Spanish press, the Moldovan flag ship with 10 crew members on board departed from Turkey to South America and was detained in a joint operation by police officers and Spanish navy. On board, cocaine packages of 30 kilograms each have been found.
 
 (Reporter A. Zara, editor L. Alcază)