WATCH: Three arrested after officers in Spain discover 140 kilos of hashish hidden in car at Tarifa port

POLICE in Spain have arrested three people for allegedly trying to smuggle 140 kilos of hashish into Tarifa from Morocco.

Policia Nacional officers backed up by EU Frontex officers discovered the illegal drugs hidden in the bottom of a car boot at a seaport checkpoint.

Working as part of Operation Minerva, the combined forces found 186 packets of the drug during a routine search, they said in a statement released on Thursday.

?3 detenidos en el Puerto de #Tarifa cuando pretendían introducir 140 kg de hachís escondidos en un vehículo

También en el Puerto de #Ceuta se recuperaron 3 coches robados en #Francia y #Bélgica, uno de ellos vinculado a una organización que habría sustraído cerca de 100 coches pic.twitter.com/oi1BNRBMrr

— Policía Nacional (@policia) August 25, 2022

The hash was packaged and ready for sale.

It was hidden by a sophisticated hydraulic mechanism below the boot of the car.

Officers only found it after they detected a strong smell of glue coming from the boot.

During the Minerva operation, Frontex and Policia Nacional officers also recovered three vehicles stolen in France and Belgium.

They are believed to be part of a criminal network that has smuggled over a hundred vehicles.

The combined op aims to fight criminal groups that take part in people, weapons and drugs trafficking, as well as the lucrative stolen cars business.

ALSO READ: