Ep 3. Crimes of Passion

Sea Patrol is an Australian drama series that revolves around the lives of officers working in the Royal Australian Navy's patrol boat crew. Season 5, Episode 3, titled "Crimes of Passion," is one of the many exciting episodes of the show.

In this episode, Hammersley's crew is confronted with two different scenarios which test their limits. Firstly, the team receives a distress signal from a yacht that claims to be under attack by pirates. The patrol boat quickly reaches the scene only to find that there are no pirates, and the yacht's skipper is a drug smuggler. The smuggler's girlfriend, who was onboard, gets critically injured during the altercation, and the Hammersley's medical officer Kate McIntyre has to perform an emergency surgery to save her life. The team finds a large cache of drugs hidden onboard and prepares to arrest the smuggler.

Meanwhile, an unexpected situation arises at the Hammersley base. Chief Petty Officer Buffer has been pushing his new bride, Lieutenant Anna Hoskins, to conceive a child as quickly as possible. After a heated argument, Anna disappears, and Buffer is caught comforting her friend and fellow officer, SMN Josh 'ET' Holiday. The base's chaplain, Padre, confronts them both with the situation, and Anna confesses to having feelings for ET before the episode ends.

Back to the Hammersley's case, the smuggler manages to escape with most of the drugs. The team uses their instincts and intelligence to track him down, and they finally corner him in the middle of the ocean. A high-speed boat chase ensues, and the smuggler opens fire on the Hammersley, hitting Lieutenant Commander Mike Flynn's shoulder. Amidst all this chaos, the team somehow manages to capture the smuggler and bring him back to the base.

In the end, the team is congratulated for their courageous efforts in thwarting the smuggling operation, and some morale is brought back to the base after the trying incident between Buffer and Anna gets resolved. "Crimes of Passion" is an emotional and thrilling depiction of the daily life of the patrol boat crew and their challenges along the way.