Joint operation of the Tax Agency, National Police and the Portuguese Judicial Police

• Three people have been arrested in Portuguese territory and the investigation is still open in Spain where investigations continue.
• The drug, from South America, was intercepted in two shipments, one batch hidden inside juice containers and another inside pulpless melons.

May 20, 2024.- The Tax Agency, the National Police and the Judicial Police of Portugal, in a joint operation, have seized more than 1,000 kilos of cocaine in Portugal and Spain. Three people have been arrested in Portugal and the investigation is still ongoing in Spain. The drug, which came from South America, was intercepted in two shipments, one batch hidden inside juice containers and the other inside melons.

The investigation was launched by the Portuguese Judicial Police in recent months, after learning of the existence of an organisation that was bringing in large quantities of cocaine from South America. The investigations led to the seizure of a shipment of 535 kilos of cocaine hidden inside juice containers in the Portuguese port of Sines.

The investigation revealed that the criminal organisation was using effective methods to conceal the narcotic substance to introduce it into European territory and that, in turn, it could be using Spanish ports for its operations.

With the information provided by the Portuguese authorities, agents of the National Police began investigations in Spanish territory to detect the activities of the organization in our country. In this way, it was detected that another shipment of the narcotic could be underway, bound for a Galician port.

Melons without pulp filled with cocaine

The participation of the Customs Surveillance Unit of the Tax Agency of Vigo, who was already paying special attention to import lines from South America, quickly allowed them to focus on a container of fruit from Brazil that seemed to be related to the organization. This shipment was carrying 21 pallets of melons. The physical inspection carried out by Customs Surveillance and the National Police revealed that, inside many of these pallets, the organisation was hiding spherical rubber bags containing cocaine. The units involved proceeded to seize a total of 490 kilos of cocaine.

The operation resulted in the arrest of three people in Portuguese territory, who have been placed at the disposal of the competent judicial authorities, with one of them being placed in preventive detention.

The case remains open in Spain and further arrests are not ruled out.