Three of the foreign suspects arrested on Wednesday were Israeli, two from the Ukraine and four from Serbia.Four people have been arrested in Leicestershire as part of a major cannabis trafficking inquiry, the Serious Organised Crime Agency (Soca) has announced.
The arrests by Leicestershire police were connected to a Serious Organised Crime Agency (Soca) operation which also saw nine foreign men held in Southampton.Officers raided the ocean-going tug 'Abbira' after it berthed in the Hampshire port.
All 13 suspects remain in custody, a Soca spokeswoman said.
The 30-metre 'Abbira' is believed to be registered under the Israeli flag.
Soca was also working with HM Revenue and Customs, Hampshire police and the Maritime Analysis and Operations Centre based in Portugal, which co-ordinates naval operations against narcotics smuggling."The search of a boat believed to have been used for this importation is ongoing but a significant amount of cannabis has been seized," a Soca spokeswoman said.
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