Jon Clarke (Publisher & Editor)THE drugs gateway to Europe is to get that bit narrower. Cadiz is to become the first province in Spain to employ a third public prosecutor to deal with drugs offences.
The move has been made after the country saw a 600 per cent rise in the import of drugs via the river Guadalquivir that links Sevilla to the sea at Sanlucar, next to Donana national park.
In 2007 alone, more than 70,000 kilos of drugs were seized just in the town of Sanlucar.
The new prosecutor, who begins work next month, will be covering an area from Sanlucar up to Jerez and into the Sierra Gaditana.
The latest measure comes on top of recent drugfighting schemes such as increasing Guardia Civil drug patrols and the creation of a special response team against organised crime.
Early signs are positive as two weeks ago the Guardia Civil arrested 13 drug bosses linked to a network in Jerez.
They were in charge of laundering some 3.5 million euros made from drug sales.
However, suspicions were raised when these men – officially unemployed – suddenly started driving around in luxury cars such as BMWs and Mercedes.
