Beachgoers Flee As Police Boat Chases Tobacco Traffickers

This is the moment cheering sunseekers applaud police as they seize suspected tobacco traffickers when they land on a Spanish beach.

The dramatic bust happened as locals were soaking up the rays at Guadarranque Beach in San Roque, Cadiz province, on 2nd August.

As a high-speed dinghy races for the shore, a police launch is seen in close pursuit while swimmers look on open-mouthed.

Then, as the small boat slides up onto the sand, officers can be seen jumping from the launch to seize the suspects before they can flee.

As the suspects are led away in handcuffs, a crowd of holidaymakers cheer and clap, shouting: “Bravo!”

Local media say the chase began earlier in the day when Civil Guard police spotted the boat in the nearby Bay of Algeciras.

After two patrol boats headed to intercept it, the suspected traffickers sailed towards the Gibraltar-San Roque Refinery in a bid to get away.

But the police deployed a smaller boat to the area, forcing the suspected smugglers to flee towards the beach.

Officers reportedly seized 20 boxes of contraband tobacco from the dinghy.

Police believe the boat may have come from Morocco, just 20 miles from Spain across the Strait of Gibraltar.