Financial transactions through cryptocurrencies, a methamphetamine extraction laboratory and excessive violence are just some details about the operations that the Sinaloa Cartel has managed to establish in Spain, more than nine thousand kilometers from its birthplace in Mexico.
After months of investigation and monitoring of a kidnapping case, the National Police and the Mozos de Escuadra dismantled a criminal cell—made up mainly of people of Mexican origin—dedicated to international drug trafficking.
On May 31, 2024, a 46-year-old man from Kosovowhose identity remains confidential, undertook a trip by car from Italy heading to Barcelona. According to reports shared by The Countryhe told his wife that he was closing a business related to perfumes, but he revealed to another family member the true reason for his trip: he would meet with leaders of the criminal group that They accused him of having lost “a substance”.
Presumably, the leader of the criminal cell held the victim responsible for the loss of a shipment of liquid methamphetaminewhich was sent from Mexico—impregnated in clothing—to Catalonia for subsequent extraction in a laboratory.
The Kosovar came to a Mexican restaurant in the municipality of Sant Andreu de Llavaneres (Barcelona) that was managed by the wife of Pablo “L”, unofficially identified as the possible leader of the criminal group, according to reports to which journalist Rebeca Carranco had access.
There, the victim was ambushed and kidnapped. The cartel members contacted his family to demand the payment of 240 thousand euros (more than five million pesos) for his release, providing a photograph as proof of life. The kidnapping was reported to authorities in Italy, Kosovo and Barcelona, which triggered intense mobilization in Spain.
After several weeks without any news, the captors contacted the victim’s wife again to insist on handing over the money. The family made the payment of 32 thousand dollars (a little more than 650 thousand pesos) in a virtual wallet of cryptocurrencies so that the transaction would not be easily traced. However, by that time, the man had already been murdered.
“At no time did they receive any news about the victim and the kidnappers continued to demand new payments,” the National Police established in a statement. statement.
Investigations suggest that the victim was executed practically the same day he arrived in Barcelona. On June 2, criminals used the vehicle in which he traveled from Italy to move his body to a wooded area in the town of Botarell, in Tarragona. The body was found on August 5, 2024 in an advanced state of decomposition, while the car was located in a municipal warehouse.
Finally, on October 22, an operation in different areas of Barcelona allowed the capture of Pablo “L”, who supposedly planned the kidnapping, and 13 of his accomplices —11 men and three women—, all linked to the Sinaloa Cartel. During the searches five homes and a restaurantinvestigators found a methamphetamine extraction lab, a large amount of ecstasy and a marijuana plantation.
