Royal Navy: HMS Diamond captures £15m drugs haul after pouncing on smugglers in Indian Ocean

Portsmouth-based warship HMS Diamond seized £15m of narcotics, with Royal Marines boarding a vessel and confiscating a 2.4 tonne haul of hashish. Operating under the Canadian-led Combined Task Force 150 - which aims at stamping out criminal activity in the oceans near the Middle East - the Type 45 destroyer forced a dhow to stop so it could be searched.

Having initially ignored calls from the ship to stop, the craft was halted when the destroyer’s Wildcat helicopter appeared overhead along with both sea boats, with all weapons targeted at the illicit vessel. Royal Marines from 42 Commando secured the vessel following a nine-hour operation.

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HMS Diamond’s boarding team searched for any narcotics and other illegal cargo. Numerous packages were discovered and found to contain drugs from testing aboard the warship.

Captain Colin Matthews, the Royal Canadian Navy officer in charge of the international force, said: “This interdiction conducted by HMS Diamond is a great example of the effective collaboration between CMF partners and the CTF 150 team. After only couple of days working together, HMS Diamond’s crew and CTF 150 staff were able to have an impact helping to increase the stability and safety for the regional populations and legitimate maritime traffic by interdicting 2382kg of narcotics.”

HMS Diamond’s success follows a concerted operation in April which led to a series of drug busts across the Indian Ocean. British, US and Indian vessels secured and destroyed nearly five tonnes of drugs. HMS Lancaster previously captured £33m of drugs while operating under a Bahrain task force in April.