The "Balkan Cartel" criminal group is hit/ 1700 kg of cocaine is found, the Albanian who supervised the transport is arrested

2023-09-26 13:28:00, Kronika CNA

The "Balkan Cartel" criminal group is hit/ 1700 kg of cocaine is

Illustrative photo

The Spanish authorities have hit the criminal organization "Balkan Cartel". After a series of attempts, the entry of cocaine into the Port of Valencia from this cartel was stopped, where 1700 kilograms of cocaine were seized.

The cocaine was found hidden in containers from Ecuador, as security forces report in a statement.

During the action, one of the members of the 'Balkan Cartel', who had military knowledge and extensive operational knowledge, who came from Albania to supervise the transaction, was arrested.

The operation was composed of different phases, which made it possible to determine the different ways that the 'Balkan cartel' used to hide the drugs.

The investigation began when agents learned that the criminal network could import containers of fruit from Ecuador every week, which concealed significant quantities of drugs.

Agents discovered that the criminal organization used different methods to get the drugs into Spain, using holes in the refrigerator of the containers, designing false floors or beams with holes.

In a first phase of the operation, which also had the cooperation of the Civil Guard, the investigators managed to discover the companies that could be used by the Balkan cartel and it was verified how they had begun to use the sea containers that entered Spain illegally.

The drug was imported in dozens of containers from a fruit exporting company in Ecuador, bound for Valencia.

Last June, this criminal network attempted to introduce a significant amount of cocaine that was hidden in the cold rooms, and a total of 45 kilograms of cocaine was seized and the member of the criminal organization was arrested. Three mobile devices and various materials for extracting drugs from containers were also seized.

In the second phase of the operation, various checks were carried out on containers that had arrived at the port of Valencia and two containers were found again, hiding 44 and 46 kilograms of cocaine each.

Also, a third container with a sophisticated structure was found hiding 200 kilograms of cocaine in its false floor. Then, in the third phase, it was discovered how the criminal organization was trying to insert the drugs into the floor beams of a container, where a total of 550 kilograms of narcotics were seized.

In the fourth phase, in July, which coincides with the fourth phase of the operation, two new containers were discovered that were hidden in the floor of the structure and 831 kilograms of cocaine were seized./ CNA