19 Oct, 2022 @ 17:45
1 min read

Authorities in Spain arrest drug gang after discovering 66 kilos of cocaine hidden inside heavy machinery

Spain drug bust

SPANISH authorities have made eight arrests and seized 66 kilograms of cocaine, after detecting a gang that imported drugs from Peru well hidden inside industrial machinery.

The National Police and the Civil Guard joint operation began after the Peruvian authorities informed their Spanish counterparts about the criminal organisation, which sent the doctored machinery via sea. 

The gang would first purchase the machines and then modify them to create hiding places for the narcotics, according to a statement from the Civil Guard. 

In early April, investigating officers discovered a suspicious container in the port of Algeciras. The machine consisted of four heavy rollers, and inspections revealed that the equipment had been modified to create hidden compartments. 

The container was then moved to Valencia, before in May being collected by a truck and taken to Barcelona province. 

The Civil Guard, National Police and customs officers managed to surprise a group of six criminals when they were in the process of removing the 61 packages of cocaine, which weighed approximately 66 kilos in total. 

Civil Guard drugs bust
The drugs found inside the machines.

Further investigations into the administrative process that saw the drugs arrive in Spain yielded another two arrests, in Barcelona and El Ejido (Almería). 

This smuggling method has been seen in Spain on other occasions. At the port of Barcelona, 620 kilos of cocaine were found in a 12-tonne rotor while an 11-tonne shredder yielded a haul of 464 kilos of the drug. 

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Simon Hunter

Simon Hunter has been living in Madrid since the year 2000 and has worked as a journalist and translator practically since he arrived. For 16 years he was at the English Edition of Spanish daily EL PAÍS, editing the site from 2014 to 2022, and is currently one of the Spain reporters at The Times. He is also a voice actor, and can be heard telling passengers to "mind the gap" on Spain's AVLO high-speed trains.

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