Refuelling boat used by drug traffickers is found abandoned on a Costa del Sol beach

Known in the trade as a 'petaqueo', it was discovered alongside 45 jerrycans of petrol which it is believed would allow high-speed narco vessels operating off the coast of Spain to refuel

Juan Cano

Málaga

Tuesday, 4 March 2025, 14:02

Spain's Guardia Civil police force is investigating the ownership of a narco-boat that was found on Tuesday morning, 4 March, on a beach in Estepona, near the municipal border with Marbella.

The boat was found stranded on the shore in the early hours of the morning. Next to it, on the sand, 45 plastic containers of fuel were also found abandoned, SUR has been able to verify.

The belief is that the gang that was about to load the petrol became aware of the presence of a police patrol car in the area or that the boat's engines had broken down, which would have hindered their escape.

In drug trafficking jargon, the supply of fuel to other vessels is known as 'petaqueo'. The business arose as a result of the Royal Decree approved by the Spanish government in 2018 that banned narco-boats.

The new rule has meant that the high-speed boats used by traffickers, also known as 'gomas', always remain in the water, linked to each other in a kind of drug wharf in the middle of the Mediterranean sea, hence the need for other boats to supply them with fuel.

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