According to Europol, a major drug smuggling ring has been dismantled by European police forces resulting in the arrest of approximately 40 people. This operation spanned over several years and led to the seizure of a whopping eight tons of cocaine.
According to the police coordination agency based in The Hague, the leaders of the cartel, who were situated in Turkey and Dubai, suffered a significant setback following the final round of arrests on Wednesday.
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During a news conference in Madrid, Oscar Esteban Remacha, head of the anti-drug trafficking unit at Spain’s Guardia Civil, stated that the network possessed the ability to transport massive quantities of cocaine worldwide. According to him, “tons and tons” of the drug could be moved through the network.
On Thursday, Europol unveiled images and a video that lasted almost 10 minutes, showcasing K-9 dogs and officers detecting bags of drugs and detaining several suspects. The footage also exhibited officers intercepting at least one boat at sea and unloading bags of alleged narcotics.
Europol reported that Croat and Italian citizens were crewing a boat off the Canary Islands when the Guardia Civil discovered 1,540 pounds of cocaine in August 2023. This discovery marked the start of the final phase of the operation.
Due to its proximity to Morocco and strong connections with Latin America, Spain serves as a primary gateway for drugs entering Europe.
Officials have stated that the identification of the leaders of the ring was made possible after investigators shared their findings with other police forces and discovered links with previous seizures.
According to Europol, a considerable number of individuals within the network hailed from Balkan countries.
Late last year, authorities arrested 40 individuals across six countries as part of a crackdown on a criminal network. Notably, two high-ranking members from Croatia were among those detained in Istanbul.
According to Europol, four arrests were made in Spain on Wednesday.
“Bombings, killings, professional assassinations”
During a dawn raid on Wednesday at his home in Marbella, a Mediterranean seaside resort, heavily armed Guardia Civil officers arrested a 40-year-old suspect. An AFP journalist who witnessed the operation reported this.
During the news conference, Tomislav Stambuk, a police officer from Croatia, referred to the operation as one of the most significant operations against the Balkan cartels to date.
According to Stambuk, the Balkan cartel is accountable for providing over 50% of cocaine in Europe. This is a significant finding that highlights the extent of the cartel’s influence in the European drug market.
According to Europol, the smugglers transported the cocaine from South America to logistical hubs located in West Africa and the Canary Islands. The network’s assets, which amount to several tens of millions of euros, have been seized or frozen.
The distribution of the product across Europe involved its transmission to various centers in Belgium, Croatia, Germany, Italy, and Spain.
According to Robert Fay, the head of Europol’s narcotics department, the recent bust happened at a time when cocaine production is on the rise. Fay mentioned that the seizures of cocaine at European ports have reached record levels, and he expressed concern about the increase in drug-related violence throughout the bloc. He stated that the situation is worrying.
Fay expressed concern over the frequent occurrence of bombings, killings, professional assassinations, and shootings in the European Union on a daily basis.
About a month ago, officials reported that Spanish police had made their biggest-ever seizure of crystal meth in the country. The bust involved 1.8 tons of the drug, which the Sinaloa Cartel from Mexico was attempting to sell in Europe. The recent arrests in Spain are believed to be connected to this operation.
In recent times, several significant cocaine busts have been made by authorities worldwide. Recently, Colombian naval officers intercepted two semisubmersible vessels fully loaded with approximately 5 tons of cocaine in the Pacific Ocean.
In the previous week, a suspected drug smuggling boat and its crew were sunk in the Caribbean Sea after a high-speed shootout, resulting in the U.S. Coast Guard offloading $63 million worth of cocaine at a Florida port. Meanwhile, the French Navy seized 2.4 tons of cocaine from a fishing boat in the Atlantic Ocean in the previous month.
Approximately 60% of the world’s cocaine is produced in Colombia.
