An ongoing case of a Polish master thrown into a Mexican prison after drugs were found onboard his vessel has culminated in a petition calling for his release.

The situation facing Andrzej Lasota is shining a spotlight on the risk facing seafarers as drugs smugglers use their vessels to transport illicit cargoes.

The master was commanding the Cyprus-registered, 32,000-dwt multipurpose vessel UBC Savannah (built 2000) when it was detained on 5 August last year.