FLASH
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A massive operation in which 3.2 tons of cocaine was seized and police raided 21 premises in Spain has dismantled an international drug-trafficking cartel operating between the Costa del Sol and Ecuador.
Mainly in Marbella and Malaga, as well as in Barcelona, Valencia, Seville, Granda and Cadiz. The operation destroyed the Albanian mafia that had managed to gain control of the highest offices in Ecuador, in order to fill Europe with Colombian drugs. Authorities said the ring intended to import at least 3.2 tons of cocaine into Spanish ports, hidden among bananas, taking advantage of Ecuador's position as the No. 1 exporter of the fruit.
Over 30 members of the transnational criminal group, including the 'head', the 48-year-old Albanian Dritan Gjika, were put in handcuffs. 12 of them were arrested in Spain. Dritan Gjika, who settled in Ecuador in 2013, was among 18 cartel members arrested in the South American country.
According to media reports, Gjika allegedly oversaw the production of cocaine in Colombian drug laboratories and had dubious business ties with former Ecuadorian president Guillermo Lasso.
The other detainees are of different nationalities, including Albania, Argentina, Colombia and even China. The operation also led to authorities in Spain seizing a number of luxury villas and properties worth 13 million Euros. Luxury properties found across Marabella and the Costa de Sol have long been the main way to launder drug money.
According to Ecuadorian authorities, the complex criminal cooperation involved the transportation of cocaine grown and cultivated in Valle del Cauca in Colombia to the port of Guayaquil in Ecuador. From there it was well hidden among cargoes of bananas and put on cargo ships destined for the port of Malaga and other key entry points to Europe.
Apart from the logistics side, the cartel was also involved in laundering drug money, believed to be up to €32 million, in the region. Not content with moving large quantities of cocaine, the cartel also had an extensive network of businesses and companies set up to hide the money.
Willian Villarroel, head of anti-narcotics in the Ecuadorian police, said the group used 6 companies in Ecuador and 4 in Spain to hide the drugs, among the banana shipments.
"They had a lot of commercial activity through which they facilitated money laundering," he said at a press conference.
Despite having managed to maintain a clean criminal record in Ecuador, from the moment he went there, crime boss Dritan Gjika had raised suspicions with the way he operated his businesses.
A 2-year investigation revealed his position in charge of production and logistics in South America, overseeing not only production but also the teams that delivered the cocaine to Ecuadorian ports.
Gjika's name became known after the relationship he had with businessman Ruben Cherres, whose body was found with signs of torture in Santa Elena, on the Ecuadorian coast. Cherres was a friend of Danilo Carrera, the brother-in-law of former president Guillermo Lasso, who left office after allegations of corruption.
He was also a key witness, willing to talk about a network of businesses allegedly used to hide drug money, some of which allegedly went all the way up to Lasso's office.
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