Joint operation with the Tax Agency, National Police and the Guardia Civil

• 16 people arrested in the provinces of Jaén, Granada and Málaga, who have already been placed in preventive detention by court order
• More than 750 kilos of hashish, 77 kilos of marijuana and 250 grams of cocaine, as well as 125,000 euros in cash have been seized and assets and current accounts worth 1.5 million euros have been blocked.
• The dismantled group had the capacity to supply itself with large quantities of narcotic substances and transport them hidden in large tonnage trucks to countries in central Europe.
• The suspects used companies such as insurance brokers and self-driving car rental establishments to launder the significant and substantial profits from their criminal activity.

March 29, 2023.- Customs Surveillance officials of the Tax Agency together with agents of the Civil Guard and the National Police have dismantled a criminal organization based in the province of Jaén dedicated to the international production and distribution of narcotic substances, which has allowed the arrest of 16 people, the seizure of some 750 kilos of hashish and the blocking of assets and bank accounts worth more than one and a half million euros. The 16 people arrested so far in the 'Andura-Plazoleta' operation have been placed in preventive detention by order of the head of the Court of First Instance and Instruction number 3 of Andújar, who has led the investigation. They are considered alleged perpetrators of crimes against public health, money laundering, criminal organization, electricity fraud and illegal possession of weapons.

Start of investigations

Investigations began in September 2022, when investigators obtained evidence of the criminal activity carried out by the organization, as well as its money laundering operations. The agents discovered that the criminal network was headed by a group of Spanish citizens based in the province of Jaén who were allegedly involved in the acquisition, preparation and distribution of large quantities of narcotic substances destined for different European countries. To do this, they used heavy-duty trucks to legally transport their goods abroad. The vehicles were fully designed and prepared to hide the drugs in camouflaged compartments, known as 'caletas'.

To supply themselves with the different batches of narcotics that they later transported, the leaders of the group made numerous and frequent trips to different parts of Andalusia to contact suppliers of marijuana and hashish, in addition to having their own marijuana production.

Money laundering structures

The alleged leaders of the organisation (a resident of Mengíbar, but on the Costa del Sol, and a resident of Andújar) enjoyed a high standard of living, which did not correspond to their legal income. However, to give the appearance of legality to these large amounts, they used companies of different kinds, with the aim of laundering the profits, such as insurance brokerages, car sales establishments or companies that rent vehicles without drivers.

The complex money laundering schemes designed by the detainees, as well as the actions to locate and immobilize financial assets, have been detected and dismantled thanks to the economic-financial study carried out by the Customs Surveillance Service of the Tax Agency.

During the course of the investigation, three drug shipments destined for Central European countries were intercepted, all three in just one month, between the end of January and the end of February.

Details of seizures

In the first, registered in the province of Alicante, Civil Guard agents seized 66 kilos of vacuum-packed marijuana, in packages of approximately one kilo. The merchandise was hidden in a double bottom in a semi-trailer. The operation took place at the premises of a company where the truck was preparing a legal load bound for Germany.

The second interception took place in the French town of Le Boulou, by the French authorities. On that occasion, the truck was carrying 370 kilos of hashish hidden in a false bottom and camouflaged with legal merchandise. Their end-use was the French Alps.

Finally, members of the National Police seized another 329 kilos of hashish at the Irún toll booth, hidden in a 'hidden' area in the semi-trailer of a truck heading to France.

The three transporters were arrested successively. From then on, and given the suspicion that they were being investigated, the organization stopped producing marijuana and also ceased its activity of stocking up on hashish from the various suppliers.

The logistics of the organization

As a common denominator for all shipments, the agents verified that all the trucks were loading drugs on a farm located in the Granada town of Chimeneas, and that it was owned by a resident of Jun, also in Granada, and who is one of those arrested. The investigations carried out allowed the location of the different infrastructures where marijuana was grown and drug shipments were processed.

Both the ships and the trucks used for transport were paid for by the leaders of the organization, either because they were the owners or because they paid the rent. Indoor plantations managed by other members of the organisation, subordinate to the alleged leaders, have also been dismantled in towns such as Linares and Mengíbar.

Final phase of exploitation

Once the three trucks were intercepted, investigators directed their investigations to the final phase of exploitation, which took place last week, with 31 simultaneous searches in private homes, businesses, warehouses and farms in Andújar, Linares, Mengíbar, Chimeneas, Jun, Alhaurín de la Torre and Fuengirola. In total, the operation 'Andura-Plazoleta' has allowed the seizure of some 750 kilos of hashish, 77 kilograms of marijuana buds, one kilogram of methamphetamine and cutting substance. Likewise, tools and materials for labelling, packaging, weighing and marketing narcotic substances have been located.

The officers also seized two handguns and three long guns (one of them stolen), and bulletproof vests; 125,775 euros in cash, luxury items resulting from criminal activity, as well as high-end vehicles and heavy-duty trucks used for transport. In addition, assets worth 1.5 million euros have been frozen in real estate and current accounts. The investigation is still ongoing and further arrests related to money laundering activities are not ruled out.