The trial has begun in Spain of a platform supply ship crew arrested in a drugs raid in 2020.
The 1,200-dwt Karar (built 1991) was intercepted 320 km from the coast of Galicia, northwest Spain.
The trial in Vigo has twice been postponed as defence lawyers tried to halt the proceedings.
A total of 28 people stand accused of trafficking 3.8 tonnes of cocaine, the Diario Atlantico reported.
Of these, 16 have been held in custody since the vessel raid, including 14 seafarers from Bangladesh and Nepal, plus a Colombian and a Spanish local.
The prosecutor’s office is seeking 13.5 years in jail for all of them.
The alleged leader of the smuggling gang is also on trial and faces 18.5 years in prison.
Other defendants include a customs surveillance official and his wife.
Defence lawyers tried to annul the hearing, questioning the jurisdiction of the Provincial Court instead of the National Court.
They also alleged violation of fundamental rights through wiretapping or geolocation of vehicles.
Former police chief to testify
One of the main witnesses for the prosecution will be a former police chief currently being investigated for his alleged links with drug gangs.
The Togo-flagged ship had not shown up on radar since July 2019 when it was in Cristobal, Panama.
The raid was a joint operation between Spain’s National Police and the Customs Surveillance Service.
A dozen officials from the tax agency and the Special Operations Group of the National Police boarded the Karar.
The smugglers’ plan was to send two boats out to the ship and unload the drugs somewhere in the Arousa estuary.
The investigation had begun six months previously, focusing on a group made up of experienced sailors and well-known traffickers.
The gang was watched in Spain. They were involved in the construction of boats and small fishing vessels or the collection of fuel and food.
The vessel had allegedly loaded the drugs at the beginning of April 2020 and had been in transit from South America for 20 days.
The Karar had no updated ownership information since July 2019 and was listed as laid up at that time.
The last owner listed was Marcomer SA, which could not be contacted.
The Karar had no port state detentions listed among five checks made in Cartagena, Colombia, during 2018 and 2019.
