Bathers in Spain catch suspect after ‘drug boat’ runs aground on beach

Beachgoers give chase, with more than 700kg of cannabis found onboard vessel, say police

It was meant to be a leisurely break as Spain sweltered through record-breaking temperatures. But beachgoers in the southern province of Granada inadvertently found themselves in pursuit of a pair of alleged drug smugglers after a cannabis-laden boat careened on to their pebbled shore.

The chase began on Saturday evening after maritime police spotted a suspicious boat off Melicena beach. Police boat in tow, the small vessel headed full tilt towards the beach, seemingly oblivious to the bathers, chairs and umbrellas that dotted the shoreline.