MADRID (AP) — Spanish authorities have arrested a 32-year-old man in February for the deaths of two police officers when a speedboat suspected of belonging to drug traffickers attacked their patrol vessel, Spain’s Guardia Civil said Thursday.
The incident took place on feb 9when the Civil Guard vessel was on patrol to identify speedboats spotted in the southern port of Barbate. Video footage showed a speedboat colliding with the vessel in the waters of the port.
The Guardia Civil said in a statement that one suspect had been arrested and that a local court had been asked to issue international arrest warrants for three people who were on the speedboat, because the others were outside Spain shortly after the incident.
Two other members of the six-person crew were injured, the Guardia Civil reported in February.
The Spanish coast at the Strait of Gibraltar is a hotspot for drug trafficking from Morocco to Europe.