The sailing boat ‘Lfitstern’ was the target of searches this morning by the Judicial Police, after being intercepted off the coast of Madeira by a French patrol vessel, which escorted it to Pier 8, in Funchal.
According to what has been possible to ascertain, the French-flagged patrol vessel ‘Jean-François Deniau’ carries out maritime surveillance operations and combats illicit trafficking, particularly at sea. The ‘Met et Marine’ website states that its main activity is the surveillance of Europe’s external borders and the fight against illegal immigration.
However, the reasons that led to this action are not known.
The Maritime Police were also at the scene.