Customs officers of the Spanish Tax Administration, in a joint operation with agents of the National Police of Spain, seized almost a ton of cocaine hidden in containers.
Cocaine belonged to the Balkan Cartel, which is currently the most active network at the European level. The method used by the organization is a ‘blind hook’ or ‘rip off’, which consists of trying to hide the drugs with a legal burden.
The operation began when agents investigating this organization learned that they were about to send a container that would arrive at the port of Algeciras with a significant amount of cocaine in it.
At the same time, a warning was received from Colombia about a possible container that started from Ecuador, with a stopover in Colombia, and will reach the Spanish coast and carry a significant amount of drugs. The method used by the organization would be a ‘blind hook’ or ‘rip off’, a technique that consists of contaminating a legal shipment with drugs.
415 and 500 kilograms of cocaine in two containers
After the agents learned the number of the containers, it was possible to confirm that the receiving criminal organization in Spain was an organization under investigation. When the container arrived at its destination, investigators opened it and seized 415 kilograms of cocaine inside.
After investigations, the agents obtained more information that allowed them to identify a new container that the organization intended to import through the port of Algeciras. For this reason, an investigation was carried out and 500 kilograms of cocaine, which was prepared for extraction, was seized.
The difficulty in investigating the members of these organizations lies in their mobility, since they travel thousands of kilometers to hold meetings. The investigation is continuing to identify all members of the network and arrest them, Klix.ba reports.
E.Dz.