The National Police of Spain discovered an air route for drug trafficking involving Costa Rica, Panama and the Canary Islands.
The cocaine transfer under this pattern was detected on June 27th, when authorities seized a suitcase with 22 kilos of cocaine at Adolfo Suárez Madrid-Barajas International Airport, located in the Spanish capital.
The suitcase traveled in the compartment of an airplane that covered the Panama-Spain route. Although the owner was not found, the police confirmed that that they left Costa Rica bound to Panama and then flew to Europe.
Some organizations dedicated to drug trafficking take advantage of flights with different scales to introduce, by personnel of corrupt cargo, suitcases with drugs. In order to be able to succeed in the exchange, it is essential that these criminal groups have accomplices both at the airport of origin and at the airport of destination,”
said the Spanish police in a press release on June 27th.
The 22 kilos of cocaine were distributed in packs of 1 kilo.
It was found that the sticker belonged to the suitcase of a Spanish traveler who came from Costa Rica, stopped in Panama and had as final destination Las Palmas de Gran Canaria. The investigation remains open with the aim of completely dismantling the organization,”
adds the report.
It is common to find foreigners who travel to Europe transporting small quantities of drugs – especially cocaine – from countries like Costa Rica.
The tourist potential of the Canary Islands turns them into places sensitive to the scourge of the drug. For example, in May, a Venezuelan flag ship was arrested for attempting to transport 2.5 tons of cocaine to Las Palmas.