Nine men are due to appear in court in Aberdeen today after class A drugs were found on a ship intercepted off the north-east coast.
The Tanzanian-registered Hamal was stopped 100 miles east of Aberdeen by the UK Border Force vessel Valiant and the Royal Navy Type 23 frigate HMS Somerset last week.
A National Crime Agency (NCA) spokesman has confirmed that a “quantity” of cocaine was found aboard the ship.
The craft remained berthed at Point Law in Aberdeen Harbour yesterday.
The NCA began an “intelligence-led” operation on board the vessel on Friday.
The spokesman added that the “inch by inch” search, being carried out by the NCA along with Border Agency specialists, could continue until Wednesday.
The men – aged between 26 and 63 – are due to appear at Aberdeen Sheriff Court today.
The NCA spokesman said due to the fact that the Hamal “is quite a large vessel”, investigators had to scour the ship to “make sure there is nothing else of interest” within it.
The crew of the Hamal are believed to have been heading to Hamburg, northern Germany, when they were intercepted on Thursday evening.
The NCA was acting on intelligence supplied from France’s Direction Nationale du Renseignement et des Enquêtes Douanière, the Maritime Information Centre and the Maritime Analysis and Operations Centre in Lisbon.
A Police Scotland spokesman said officers were “on standby” to assist the NCA with their investigations.
John McGowan, of NCA’s border policing command, said: “This is a potentially significant seizure of illegal drugs, only made possible by the co-operation between ourselves, Border Force, the Royal Navy and our international partners.
“The exact amount of cocaine on board is yet to be determined and the search is likely to continue for some time.
“The ongoing NCA investigation is being supported by Police Scotland.”
A spokesman for Aberdeen Harbour also confirmed staff were assisting with the operation.
In the last few months, the Hamal docked at the fishing town of Tuzla, Turkey, as well as Santa Cruz de Tenerife in the Canary Islands.