Former PSP officer in Porto convicted to 8.5 years for drug trafficking
A former PSP officer from Porto has been sentenced to eight and a half years in prison for joining a drug trafficking network since 2022. The São João Novo Court also convicted six other defendants in the same case.
Former police officer convicted in Porto for joining trafficking network with links to South America
A former PSP officer from Porto received a sentence of eight years and six months in prison on Thursday for belonging, since 2022, to a drug trafficking network, according to Observador. The São João Novo Court in Porto also determined that the former officer — who is in pre-trial detention — must pay 240,000 euros to the Portuguese State.
The case involves 11 more defendants besides the former officer. Six were convicted to sentences ranging between six years and six months and seven years and six months in prison. The remaining five were acquitted.
According to the public prosecution's charges, the group imported drugs hidden in agricultural machinery or in the hulls of ships destined for the Port of Leixões, in Matosinhos. When the narcotics arrived hidden in the hulls, divers were contracted to remove them from the location. Along with the drugs came GPS locators, which allowed the group to always know the exact position of the shipment.
When seven of the defendants were detained in May 2024, the Judicial Police (PJ) classified them as members of "one of the main drug trafficking networks in the north of the country". In a statement, the PJ described the organisation as "a structured criminal organisation, with ramifications in South America, which was responsible for the importation, transport and delivery of illicit substances", adding that the group "was feared for its violent methods and use of firearms".
At the beginning of the trial, on 22 September, the former officer opted not to make a statement in court.
Source: Observador