The Spanish National Police announced this Thursday the dismantling of the Sinaloa Cartel’s infrastructure in the country. seizure of 1,800 kilograms of methamphetamine and arrest of five people, among them is a Mexican who headed a criminal organization in the Iberian country.

At a press conference in Madrid, the head of the department for combating drugs and organized crime of the General Commission of the Judicial Police, Antonio Martinez Duarte, noted that This is the largest seizure of “crystal methamphetamine” in Spain and the second in Europe.

The seized drugs, which arrived from Mexico, are in cost on the European market of several tens of millions of euros, – assured the commissioner, without going into details of how the drug was transported from Mexico to Spain.

In addition to drug seizures, cash, five vehicles, documentation and a firearm.

The police demonstrated the seized money at the press conference, among which stood out a five euro (90 Mexican pesos) bill presented as a “token”.

The bill attracted attention because the date and amount were indicated on it: 05/06/2024 and 224k.

Commissioner Martinez Duarte explained that this a kind of “contract” wherein date and amount of drug administered.

He explained that this is a common element of criminal organizations and that when drugs are exchanged between two groups Both have a copy of the ticket, which confirms the transaction. and prevent theft of quantity of goods.

The seizure of methamphetamine was made in the city of Villena, Alicante province. It served as the operational center of the Sinaloa Cartel cell. Of these, five people have been arrested so far, Mexican about 35 years oldthree Spaniards and a Romanian woman, the partner of one of the Spaniards.

Mexican cartels are trying to set up laboratories in Spain

The Mexican man detained in the operation belonged to the Sinaloa cartel, Mexican authorities confirmed to Spanish police, who were told that The man was already serving a sentence for drug trafficking.

Commissioner Martinez noted that the Spanish authorities They believe that the Mexican cartels are “unsettled” in Spain, but due to the pressure that is being put on laboratories in other parts of Europe, they are trying to implement in the Iberian country laboratories for the production of synthetic drugs.

Excellent security measures

The Spanish police indicated that the investigation began in early 2023, when Agents identified a criminal gang involved in cocaine trafficking from the peninsula to the Canary Islands, which were located in Tenerife.

This group sent cocaine hidden in washing machines through legal companies that did not know about the contents of the cargo. The police arrested one of the members of this cell and 24 kilograms of cocaine seized which was the beginning of the operation.

drug supply were carried out by a logistics company located in Madrid, so the police kept a close eye on the group that took “high security measures” as the head of the provincial brigade of the judicial police of Valencia, Marcelino Fernandez, noted in an interview Aristegui News.

“They were making test trips to see if they were being followed.”Among other security measures, said Fernandez, who said they were hired because “they were very professional” to avoid detection.

After being identified responsible for the organization, it was established that he operated from the province of Valencia. and that when transporting goods, the group used a second vehicle to detect and circumvent possible police checks.

Arrest of Sinaloa cartel leader in Spain

On May 6, the police discovered a new batch of drugs, which This allowed us to locate the operations center where the drugs were stored and hidden.

The cartel van drove up to a house in the Valencian city of Villena and stayed there for an hour and a half. The police intercepted the car and noticed hydraulic compressor system providing access to the ground parts where he was 224 kilograms of methamphetamine.

Following the discovery, members of the Special Security Task Force (STF) conducted a search of the house where the truck had stopped and Inside, they seized more than 1,500 kilograms of methamphetamine.

Arrested on the spot Mexican man it was identified How He leader of a criminal cell.

In addition, others six searches in different places of Alicante, such as Pusol, during which five vehicles, communication elements, a large amount of documentation, firearms and cash were seized.

The police noted that The investigation remains open and more arrests are possible. Therefore, he did not want to disclose more detailed information about the detainees and their connections.

However, Commissioner Antonio Martinez Duarte denied that the cell was connected to other groups linked to the Mexican cartels. which were dismantled in 2023 and 2022.

He emphasized cooperation with international agencies located in Mexico and with connections to Mexican police in Spain.