A total of twenty-four people have so far been detained in a police operation against drugs trafficking in Algeciras, Cádiz province, with 213 kilos of cocaine being seized.
Operación Espuela has involved raids on homes in Algeciras, La Línea, Sotogrande, Los Barrios and Estepona. All but one of the detainees, the ringleader, are from Cádiz. The ringleader is a resident of Estepona.
Thirteen of the detainees worked in the container area at the port of Algeciras, their jobs ranging from crane operators to security guards.
The group functioned much the same as a sub-contractor and was used to ensure that the drugs shipments passed through the docks area safely for onward distribution to the rest of Europe. They would put drugs into containers once they had passed through the customs area, carefully resealing them with the appropriate seal of the originating country.
Some of the cocaine was also hidden in the cooling systems of lorries. Most of the drugs originated from Guayaquil in Ecuador and arrived concealed in crates of bananas.
In addition to 213 kilos of cocaine, police seized 26 vehicles, mobile phones, GPS equipment and various documents.