Drugs

The Spanish National Police dismantles the largest cocaine distribution network that operated in the Sierra de Cádiz

29 people have been arrested accused of crimes of belonging to a criminal organization, drug trafficking and illegal possession of weapons. Among those arrested is a distributor who, taking advantage of his work as a fish dealer, supplied the different cocaine sellers in the province. 18 house searches have been carried out in which a total of 1,860 grams of cocaine, 170,000 euros in cash, 15 vehicles, 421 marijuana plants, 1,500 grams of marijuana buds, 359 grams of hashish, 200 anabolic tablets, have been intervened. as well as a revolver and four hunting rifles with silencers and telescopic sights

Agents of the Spanish National Police have arrested 29 people in the provinces of Cádiz and Seville as alleged perpetrators of crimes of belonging to a criminal organization, drug trafficking and illegal possession of weapons. The detainees were part of a perfectly structured organization that had become the largest cocaine distribution network in the Sierra de Cádiz region. In total, 18 domiciliary searches have been made in the Cadiz towns of El Puerto de Santa María, Puerto Real, Arcos de la Frontera, Jerez de la Frontera, Paterna de Rivera and in the Sevillian town of Lebrija, where a total of of 1,860 grams of cocaine, 170,000 euros in cash approximately, 15 vehicles, 421 marijuana plants, 1,500 grams of marijuana buds, 359 grams of hashish,

The investigation began in El Puerto de Santa María at the end of 2019, when the agents learned of the existence of several cocaine retail points located in a neighborhood of that town that were operated by one of the organization’s clans. After several steps, the agents were able to identify all the members and verified the two points of sale located in said neighborhood, which had surveillance cameras and armored doors to make it difficult for the police authorities to access, as well as two other houses where they kept cash from your illegal activity.

During the surveillance carried out in the first semester of this year, and once the State of Alarm had been established, it was observed that the El Puerto clan, faced with the shortage of cocaine and the impossibility of obtaining supplies from its usual supplier, contacted another clan located in the town of Lebrija to supply it during those months, thus being able to locate and identify the three members who operated in that town. This clan was dismantled in June, with three arrests and the intervention of thousands of euros. The members of this clan used their partners to hide homes and vehicles acquired as a result of the profits from the illicit business.

A fishmonger distributed the substance in his work van

In the second phase of the operation, the investigation revealed how the clan that operated in Puerto de Santa María usually obtained its supplies from a supplier based in Paterna de la Rivera and La Barca de La Florida, which used its trade as a fishmonger to distribute your merchandise among the different vendors in the province, being able to identify all these points of sale. The subject used the fishmonger’s van to supply the vendors of the “clan of the Sierra” under the pretext of distributing fish, using his family business as a cover for his illicit purposes.

In this way, after monitoring and analysis of the routes used by the fishmonger, the cocaine sales points of the different members of the clan were located in Arcos, Paterna de la Rivera and La Barca de la Florida, as well as a point in the bay (Puerto Real). At these points, in addition to cocaine, hashish and marijuana buds from a plantation owned by one of those investigated could be intervened. In this way, it was also found that the partners of some of those investigated had a very active profile in the plot, acting both as sellers and as a link between their partners and the main cocaine distributor.

Third phase with the dismantling of the Jerez clan

In the last phase of the investigation, the Jerez clan was identified, made up of the three main cocaine distributors who were also arrested. The members of this clan occupied the highest echelon of the hierarchy of the organization, and from which the person dedicated to the fishmonger was supplied. This clan sold approximately a kilo of cocaine to the distributor on a regular basis, since it supplied the rest of the sellers very quickly in addition to giving orders regarding the form and timing of the distribution of the substance.

In the home searches, the security measures used to prevent the access of the Security Forces and Bodies to the homes and the confiscation of narcotic substances were verified, as they had armored gates and false funds in the cabinets where they hid the cocaine. Even two of the houses were connected by their interior to facilitate the escape in case of access to one of the houses.

Currently, the investigation is ongoing by the National Police with the aim of identifying the origins, flows and whereabouts of illicit proceeds. So far, 31 bank accounts (with an approximate balance of 100,000 euros), the freezing of ten homes, 28 vehicles and a boat have been requested to preventively blockade.

Operation “Primate” has been developed within the framework of the Campo de Gibraltar Special Security Plan to Combat Trafficking of Drugs and Psychotropic Substances.