Agents of the National Police have dismantled a criminal organization that had allegedly been dedicated to money laundering from human trafficking for more than ten years.
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Seven entries and searches have been carried out in the provinces of Santander, Albacete and Granada where five people have been arrested for criminal organization and money laundering, in addition to one of them for a crime against public health.
The first phase of the operation began in 2021 due to investigations carried out against the sexual exploitation of women in establishments located in various provinces throughout Spain, and in the operation of which nine people were arrested and three entries and searches were carried out in which more than ten thousand euros were intervened.
In this second phase, it has been possible to dismantle the financial and business network of the organization, charging new crimes such as money laundering and membership in a criminal organization, as well as drug trafficking for one of those investigated.
Five people have been arrested two in Santander, one in Albacete and two in Granada and seven searches have been carried out in which abundant documentation, a firearm, an electric gun and four extendable defenses have been seized.
In addition, 249 grams of hashish, 130,000 euros in cash, watches and jewelry worth more than 20,000 euros and a high-end vehicle have been seized.
As a result of this operation, 31 properties valued at 20,750,000 euros and 169 bank accounts with a balance of 200,000 euros have been blocked.
This organization introduced the benefits obtained from this illicit activity into the legal circuit through a complex business network.
Those arrested were advised by a trusted manager, based in Santander, who managed the organization's funds and advised the members on the way in which they should make deposits or changes in ownership of companies, to avoid being linked to the illicit activities related to trafficking.
It was also discovered that he recommended to the members of the organization how to justify income through private loan contracts and false debt acknowledgments, thus managing to acquire various legal assets, thus perfecting the crime of money laundering. ■