The latest operation against drug trafficking in Zaragoza carried out by the UDYCO (Drug and Organized Crime Unit) has resulted in the seizure of 73 kilograms of drugs - 30 of cocaine and 43 of hashish - and 51,000 euros and the arrest of 16 persons as alleged perpetrators of drug trafficking crimes and membership in a criminal organization.
Among those arrested is an 82-year-old woman, mother of the transporter who helped the agents uncover the plot, who was traveling as co-pilot with her son throughout the national and international geography with the aim of not arousing suspicion at the various police and customs controls. that they were passing through.
As explained today by the National Police, it is an operation carried out in three phases in the autonomous communities of Aragón, Navarra and La Rioja. The investigation began last February when an individual was detected who acted as a transporter for different drug trafficking organizations in national territory and abroad.
During his travels, the suspect was dedicated to transporting hashish and marijuana from Spain to other European countries, while on his return he returned loaded, mainly from the Netherlands, with different precursors of amphetamine derivatives that were then unloaded in the Navarrese town of Tudela. Likewise, he also transported all types of narcotic and psychotropic substances throughout the national territory.
Investigators verified that the suspect used his 82-year-old mother as co-pilot to make these trips, which could sometimes cover up to 2,000 kilometers in just 24 hours. During these trips, he used various vehicles that he changed frequently and carried a wheelchair and an oxygen device. This way of acting meant that the vehicle did not arouse suspicion at the various police and customs checkpoints that they crossed paths with.
As the investigation progressed, they managed to identify two people who frequented a workshop in Tudela and who were dedicated to importing precursors of amphetamine derivatives to later convert them into speed (amphetamine sulfate) and MDMA (crystal) in a laboratory they had located in a rustic house.
Finally, the investigation took them to Logroño, where the main investigator, accompanied by other people, established various contacts for several days with two men. These people turned out to be the leader of an important drug trafficking organization based in La Rioja and his lieutenant, both known to the agents from previous investigations.
With all this data, the first operational phase took place on August 3 upon the suspect's arrival in Zaragoza on his return from a trip to the Riojan town of Villamediana de Iregua. At that moment, the agents located in his vehicle a 22-kilogram bundle of hashish hidden in the mother's diapers, for which he was detained.
On this day, two other home searches were carried out in Zaragoza, where more narcotic substances, money and effects related to drug trafficking were seized. Five other alleged members of the gang were also arrested, in addition to her mother, who was released due to her state of health while the rest of her went to prison.
The second phase of the operation, on August 17, took place in the town of Tudela, where four people were arrested, two of whom were imprisoned after being brought to justice, and where a laboratory was found in which they intervened. large amount of chemicals, precursors and tools necessary for the production of MDMA and amphetamine sulfate.
The operation culminated on August 31 in La Rioja, with the search of three homes in Logroño, Alberite and Villamediana de Iregua, the latter town where 28 kilos of cocaine and 21 kilos of hashish were hidden, among other effects related to drug trafficking. narcotics, and five other people were arrested and also taken to prison.
This is the second major cocaine intervention carried out by the UDYCO of the Zaragoza Judicial Police Brigade in 2023 after the one carried out in March when another 22 kilograms were seized in Operation Samsón.
