The Mossos d’Esquadra and the National Police have arrested in several locations in Barcelona 14 members of a group linked to the Mexican Sinaloa cartel accused, among other crimes, of the kidnapping and murder of a 46-year-old Italian man, an alleged member of the gang whose body was found in August in a forest in Botarell (Tarragona).
The detainees, the majority of Mexican nationality, are eleven men and three women between 30 and 70 years oldamong them the mastermind of the organization and the kidnapping of the victim. The police accuse them of international drug trafficking, money laundering, kidnapping and murder.
In searches carried out at five homes and a restaurant in several Catalan towns, the agents located a methamphetamine extraction laboratory impregnated on solid surfaces, such as pieces of clothing, as well as this same substance already prepared for consumption, a large amount of ecstasy and a marijuana plantation, in addition to firearms, technological material and money.
Kidnapping and extortion
The Mossos and the National Police explain in separate statements that the investigation of the case, carried out jointly by both forces, began at the end of June. Through Interpol in Kosovo and Europol in Italy, they learned of the complaint from a father and a woman about the kidnapping of their relative in Barcelona.
Later, on August 5, the agents They found the body of a manwith signs of violence and in an advanced state of decomposition, in a wooded area of the municipality of Botarell (Tarragona). The investigation revealed that the 46-year-old man had been kidnapped by members of the organization now detained between May 31 and June 2.
The victim allegedly worked for the gang and had traveled from Italy to Barcelona to meet with some of the leaders of the criminal network. After June 2, the victim’s relatives in Kosovo received a message from the kidnappers in which they were told demanded the payment of 240,000 euros for his ransomand in which they included a photo of the victim as proof of life.
The family contacted the police days later, informing them that they had made a payment in cryptocurrencies as a result of the pressure they received from the kidnappers, from whom they asked for new proof of life. The police detail that the payment amounted to about $32,000 and that it was made in a virtual cryptocurrency wallet, thus following the organization instructionswho wanted to make it difficult to trace the money with this procedure.
Despite the payment, family members They did not receive any news about the victim at any time. and the kidnappers continued to demand more payments. The investigators managed, however, to identify the people linked to the transaction claimed by the criminals, who were directly related to the kidnapping.
In addition, they managed to locate in a municipal warehouse in Barcelona the vehicle in which the victim traveled from Italy to the Catalan capital, as well as evidence that the kidnappers used that car to transport the man’s body from a house located in Sant Andreu de Llavaneres (Barcelona) to the wooded area of Botarell.
The kidnappers are linked to the Mexican Sinaloa cartel and received in Catalonia packages sent from Mexico with methamphetamine impregnated in pieces of clothing. The investigative court number 2 of Reus has maintained the secrecy of the proceedings throughout the investigation so as not to jeopardize any of the efforts that were being carried out and allow the dismantling of the criminal organization. After the secret was lifted, the agents informed the victim’s relatives of his death and the location of the body.
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