Portsmouth Warship in £1.5m Drugs Bust

A Royal Navy warship helicopter has played a pivotal role in helping Caribbean police capture drugs worth £1.5 million.

Crew on board a Lynx helicopter from Portsmouth-based HMS Manchester alerted police after spotting a suspicious-looking power boat off the Caribbean island of Montserrat.

They then discovered 12 bales containing cannabis on a nearby beach. The Royal Navy said the helicopter had been flying
Commander Rex Cox, commanding officer of HMS Manchester, to shore in Montserrat on Sunday when they reported the boat to police.

Five men from the speedboat have been arrested and are now in police custody, the Royal Navy said.

Cdr Cox said: "I am delighted that cooperation between the Royal Montserrat Police and HMS Manchester has resulted in the seizure of a significant quantity of narcotics.''

HMS Manchester is currently anchored off the coast of Montserrat as part of her Atlantic patrol tasking (north) deployment in support of the British Overseas Territories in the Caribbean region.