Drugs worth £33 million have been seized by the Royal Navy in the Middle East

In another blow to drug smugglers, the Royal Navy warship HMS Lancaster seized drugs with a street value of almost £33 million when it launched two raids on drug traffickers in the Middle East in 24 hours.

Just weeks after HMS Trent dealt a blow to Caribbean drug traffickers by seizing £17 million worth of illegal drugs, her colleagues aboard HMS Lancaster pounced half a world away in the Indian Ocean.

Lancaster and Royal Marines sailors found heroin, hashish and crystal meth – more than two tonnes of the illegal drugs have now been destroyed.

Defense Secretary Grant Shapps said:

The fantastic successes of the crew of HMS Lancaster and the Royal Marine commandos in the Indian Ocean demonstrate the important role our Navy plays in policing the oceans. Their tireless efforts and professionalism have dealt another decisive blow to criminal networks.

Following HMS Trent’s similar success in seizing a significant amount of drugs on the other side of the world, the Royal Navy continues to lead the UK’s commitment to tackling drug smugglers around the world.

As part of the Canadian-led Combined Task Force 150, dedicated to combating criminal activity across more than one million square miles of sea in the Middle East, HMS Lancaster was on the very first day of its security patrol as its Wildcat helicopter during a routine deployment following a period of training discovered a suspicious ship.

In an eight-hour operation, Royal Marines from 42 Commando secured the ship and allowed Lancaster’s sailors to board the ship. After an extensive search, the team seized nearly 100 packages of heroin and crystal meth.

Shortly after this success, the ship’s Wildcat helicopter – from the 815 Naval Air Squadron – launched a dusk patrol to once again traverse the Indian Ocean.

Once again the flight crew encountered a suspicious vessel which was pursued throughout the night before commandos boarded in the morning and secured the dhow before being joined by sailors to conduct a further search.

This time they were able to seize 2.4 tonnes of hashish within six hours, making a total haul of 3.7 tonnes of illegal drugs.

According to the National Crime Agency, the total of the two drug hauls had a street value of almost £33 million.

Commanding Officer Commander Chris Sharp said:

I am extremely proud that the entire team in Lancaster carried out these two interdictions on the first two days of our operation.

Complex intercept operations like this in such a challenging environment require true teamwork across the entire ship’s crew. We share this success with our partners in CTF 150, who provided significant support to the operation.