Civil Guard and GNR dismantle drug-trafficking network on the Guadiana with 10 tonnes of hashish
Operation Trident results in 10,600 kilograms of hashish seized, 10 arrests, 9 vehicles seized and 3 firearms confiscated at the Spanish-Portuguese border.
Operation Trident uncovers two drug-related safe houses on the Guadiana border
The Civil Guard and the Portuguese Republican National Guard (GNR) have dismantled a criminal drug-trafficking organisation that operated on both sides of the Guadiana river, according to El País. The operation, named Trident, resulted in the seizure of 10,600 kilograms of hashish, the arrest of ten people, the seizure of nine vehicles and the confiscation of three firearms.
The first operation took place on Thursday, 20 August at a property in Ayamonte, Huelva. Following an extensive surveillance operation, officers located a drug warehouse and found three gang members inside. At the property, 132 bundles of hashish were seized, with a total weight of 5,280 kilograms, six vehicles—five of which had been stolen and modified for the concealed transport of narcotics—and two firearms: a pistol and an assault rifle, both loaded and ready for use.
The three detainees were placed at the disposal of the judiciary as alleged perpetrators of drug-trafficking offences, unlawful possession of firearms, vehicle theft and document forgery. The court ordered their remand in custody.
Two days later, on Saturday, 22 August, the investigation led the security forces of both countries to a second property located in Portuguese territory, also near the Guadiana, in an area considered strategic for the organisation's movements in the border region. There, another 133 bundles of hashish were found—5,320 kilograms—three vehicles, at least one of them stolen, and a pistol.
The occupants of the property initially managed to flee by boat, but were intercepted shortly afterwards thanks to a large-scale joint deployment of land, maritime and air resources by the Civil Guard and the GNR. The operation concluded with the arrest of seven people, accused of offences against public health for drug trafficking, vehicle theft and unlawful possession of firearms. The arrestees were handed over to Portuguese judicial authorities on 24 August, and all of them were subsequently remanded in custody.
The Guadiana river is one of the most active points in the fight against drug trafficking in the province of Huelva. Last October, a GNR officer was killed and three others were injured after their patrol boat was rammed by a drug-trafficking speedboat on the same river.
The dismantled organisation used the Guadiana as a route for the introduction and storage of drugs, which were subsequently distributed across Spain, Portugal and other European countries. The security forces of both countries believe that, with this joint operation, the network has been definitively dismantled.
Source: El País