Guardia Civil dismantles drug cultivation and trafficking network in Alguazas and Ceutí with 10 arrests
Operation Heremi resulted on 19 May in 10 arrests, the dismantling of 16 cannabis greenhouses and the seizure of more than 1,500 cannabis plants.
Ten arrested in Murcia after dismantling 16 cannabis greenhouses in anti-drug trafficking operation
The Guardia Civil arrested ten people on 19 May in the Murcian municipalities of Alguazas and Ceutí on suspicion of belonging to a criminal organisation dedicated to the cultivation, manufacture and trafficking of drugs, as well as the unlawful possession of firearms. According to El Mundo, the operation—termed 'Operation Heremi'—included 21 residential searches, six in Ceutí and fifteen in Alguazas.
The police operation, comprising more than 100 officers with support from the local police forces of both municipalities, dismantled a total of 16 cannabis greenhouses. Among the seized items were more than 1,500 cannabis plants, 10 kilogrammes of cannabis buds, 20 grammes of cocaine, 32,000 euros in cash, two vehicles, five shotguns, two revolvers and ten bladed weapons.
The government delegate in the Murcia Region, Francisco Lucas, and the colonel in charge of the 5th zone of the Guardia Civil, Francisco Pulido, provided details of the operation at a press conference on Monday.
Lucas explained that the investigation began several months ago, when the Guardia Civil began to track a family clan based in the two municipalities and allegedly engaged in the sale of "narcotic substances". "The evidence obtained made it possible to establish that they had several drug selling points, where they offered cannabis, hashish and cocaine," added the delegate.
The plantations were distributed across different properties, which served to supply those selling points. Some rooms functioned as drying facilities. The surveillance made it possible to verify the "constant flow of customers", which led the judicial authority to grant the corresponding warrants for entry.
During the searches it was also established that several properties maintained illegal connections to the electricity supply network.
Colonel Pulido clarified that members of the clan had police and criminal records for offences of the same nature. The fact that these were small municipalities complicated the investigation, as there was a risk that the officers would not go unnoticed.
Regarding the weapons, the Guardia Civil noted that the organisation used them both to defend itself against other rival organisations engaged in drug trafficking and to hinder a potential police entry. One of the seized shotguns had a cartridge in the chamber that was struck but did not fire.
Source: El Mundo