Fruit and veg shop drug racket busted
Two greengrocers have been remanded in custody
A TORREVIEJA fruit and veg shop which was allegedly selling drugs has been raided by the Guardia Civil.
During a search, officers found wraps of cocaine in boxes placed on shelves at the premises. The force headquarters reported on Monday that they had carried out Operation Sushant as part of a national campaign against drug trafficking.
Detectives started investigating after they received a tipoff from members of the public about possible ‘hidden business’ that was going on at the shop. The store was placed under surveillance and officers found that it was apparently closed but there was a ‘constant flow of customers coming and going’.
They discovered that the business was run by two brothers of Spanish nationality from Torrevieja.
When the officers stopped some of the clients as they left, drugs were found in bags which they were taking away with them.
The surveillance apparently showed that the younger brother was selling the goods in the shop while the elder sibling ‘frequently appeared and disappeared from the shop’, according
to a force spokesman.
Officers identified him as the leader of the racket, he added.
They noticed that the elder brother visited betting shops in the area, where he would allegedly sell drugs to their customers.
According to the investigation, a 67-year-old man worked with the siblings – carrying out surveillance outside their fruit shop and also finding clients for them in betting establishments.
The Guardia Civil carried out their raid using sniffer dogs which allegedly located ‘numerous wraps of cocaine and marijuana all over the store’, which were ‘even in a sweet box in the shop window’.
Officers seized 145 grams of cocaine, 18 bags of contraband tobacco and €2,800 in cash, amongst other wares.
The two brothers, aged 40 and 46, have been charged with drug peddling and belonging to criminal organisation.
They were remanded in custody by a judge. The 67-year-old man has been placed under investigation.