 Tintin is informed by Thomson and Thompson of a case involving the <unk> of a drunken man , later killed , found with a scrap of paper from what appears to be a tin of crab meat with the word " Karaboudjan " <unk> on it . His subsequent investigation and the kidnapping of a Japanese man interested in giving him a letter leads Tintin to a ship called the Karaboudjan , where he is abducted by a syndicate of criminals who have hidden opium in the crab tins . Tintin escapes from his locked room after Snowy <unk> through his bonds and Tintin knocks out a man sent to bring him food , leaving the man bound and gagged in the room . Tintin encounters Captain Haddock , an alcoholic sea captain , who is manipulated by his first mate , Allan , and is unaware of his crew 's criminal activities . Tintin hides in the locker under the bed and defeats Jumbo , the sailor left in the cabin , while Allan thinks Tintin has climbed out of the <unk> back into the <unk> . He blows open the <unk> door , then finding it empty goes back to the Captain 's room , where he finds Jumbo tied to a chair and gagged . <unk> the ship in a lifeboat after sending a radio message to the police about the cargo , a seaplane tries to attack them . Tintin and the Captain <unk> the plane , tie up the pilots , and try to reach Spain . Haddock 's drunken behaviour in a storm causes them to crash @-@ land in the <unk> , where the crew escapes . 
