British navy and customs teams found cannabis resin worth more than £11 million when they boarded a South American-registered vessel in the Irish Sea, Swansea Crown Court was told yesterday.
The vessel, the Cam Scout, which had a crew of seven, was tracked as she voyaged from Morocco with a three-tonne consignment of drugs for sale in either Britain or the Republic.
The ship was arrested about three miles outside Irish territorial waters.
The trial is expected to last eight weeks.