Agents of the Spanish National Police in collaboration with the German Police of Würzburg and Unterfranken have seized a total of 74 kilograms (photos) of MDMA crystals (ecstasy) in two adjacent operations and resulted in the arrest of three people in Spain and one in Germany.
The largest of the two drug caches, as reported on Sunday 27th of January 2019 by sources of the Spanish National Police, amounts to 69 kilograms and was introduced from central Europe to Spain via large trucks with fake cargo papers. The narcotics were stashed in Vila-real and sold in Madrid. Shortly after, police found the second drug cache of 5 kilograms in Madrid which was ready to be sold on the streets or through darknet market platforms.
Four people were arrested, one individual in Germany and three in Spain. Among them, there’s the leader of the organization as well as two of his lieutenants.
The investigation began in 2015 when Spanish law enforcement became aware of a drug trafficking organization dedicated to introducing MDMA into the country. After several search efforts, they located the transport route used to introduce the synthetic drug in Spain by trucks, hiding it among other commercial products with fake transport documents. The narcotics would arrive at Vila-real and moved to Madrid in different vehicles. More so, the criminal group was well organized and had an efficient continental communication infrastructure which slowed down the police inquiry.
![f73a2a6e-pp[1]](https://cryptoaffairs.files.wordpress.com/2019/01/f73a2a6e-pp1.jpg?w=1040)
The group is facing a minimum of ten years in prison and seizing of illegal revenue or propriety. Furthermore, if the court identifies aggravating circumstances such as selling to minors, firearms possession, or endangering public health, the penalties can go up to 21 years of incarceration.
![mdma-villarreal-kbeg--620x349@abc[1]](https://cryptoaffairs.files.wordpress.com/2019/01/mdma-villarreal-kbeg-620x349@abc1.png?w=1040)
MDMA or ecstasy is a substance from the family of amphetamines, considered relatively safe for human consumption in its purest form. However, the main problem with synthetic drugs, in general, stands in the chemical characterization of the particular narcotic tablet, crystal, dose, or larger lot of drugs. Forensics will have to analyze both the doses and method of trafficking to establish how much of a public safety hazard was the gang. They’ll come up with a purity and concentration rating of the captured darkweb ecstasy crystals for the court to decide the punishments.
RESOURCE: http://www.emcdda.europa.eu/countries/drug-reports/2018/spain/drug-laws-and-drug-law-offences_en
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