The application of a recent ruling by the Constitutional Court has led to the release of 24 detainees in operation Black Shadow, which months ago dismantled a network that would have introduced 57 tons of cocaine into Europe, because their defenses did not have enough information to challenge the imprisonment as the case was secret.
This operation dealt a blow to drug trafficking in Lanzarote. According to what La Voz has learned, in Lanzarote a total of 20 people were arrested and 29 properties were searched, the largest number of searches in the archipelago.
In the police searches approximately 100,000 euros were seized, drugs intended for medium-scale trafficking, three short firearms, numerous documentation and tools intended for maritime trafficking such as satellite phones and geolocation devices.
The Black Shadow operation resulted in 105 detainees in two phases: the first culminated in July of last year in the Canary Islands and the second concluded in Andalusia in November.
The judge of the National Court María Tardón has had to release 24 of those investigated in view of the criterion of the Criminal Chamber, which weeks ago ordered the release of another of those accused in this case, considering his right to defense violated for not having informed him of the "content of the evidence" that led him to provisional prison.
To adopt its decision, the Chamber took into account the doctrine of the Constitutional Court, established since 2017 through different judgments, and reinforced last February in a resolution, which established that, in a secret case, the judge must "specify" not only the list of sources of evidence against the investigated party, but also "the data that allow the identification of said source."
In its ruling, the Constitutional Court found that some courts had erroneously interpreted its doctrine, by understanding that they should only inform the investigated party of the "type or class of evidence in a generic way, but not its effective content".
Something similar occurred in the investigation of this drug trafficking case: the Chamber concluded that the judge informed one of the accused of his "concrete participation", but "not the content of the evidence" that motivated his entry into prison.
Specifically, he did not detail the result of the police surveillances, did not provide a summary of the transcription of the phone taps or details such as with whom he spoke and when in said conversations.
In view of the criterion set forth by the Chamber in application of the doctrine of the TC, now Judge Tardón has agreed to the release of 24 detainees -to whom precautionary measures have been imposed-, according to legal sources inform EFE.
Anti-drug, worried about the releases
The case recalls what happened with another important drug trafficking plot, in which the former head of UDEF in Madrid, Óscar Sánchez, is prosecuted.
The considered ringleader, Ignacio Torán, was released from prison in April last year along with others investigated for similar reasons, although months later he re-entered prison after investigators gathered new evidence against him.
From the Anti-Drug Prosecutor's Office, they view these releases with great concern, according to sources consulted by EFE, who call for a legal reform that allows prosecuting this type of large-scale criminal organizations with tools typical of the fight against organized crime, as reflected in the latest roadmap proposed by the European Commission.
They disagree with the release of these investigated individuals, considering that their defenses *did* have the necessary data so as not to diminish their right to defense in a case that is under secrecy of the investigation and that must have reservations for the good future of the investigation.
They also feel a deep desolation for the place where the aforementioned ruling of the Constitutional Court leaves investigators when it comes to combating organized crime, in which summary secrecy is essential.
Blow to drug trafficking logistics in the Atlantic
The Operation Black Shadow meant the dismantling of a logistical support organization for drug trafficking, with 105 arrested in two phases: the first culminated in July of last year in the Canary Islands and the second concluded in Andalusia in November.
The operation, which involved an attack on the largest distribution and asset laundering center in Campo de Gibraltar, resulted in the seizure of 10,400 kilos of cocaine, 70 vehicles, 30 boats, six properties, three firearms, multiple bank accounts, two 'hexacopters' or megadrones, more than 800,000 euros and more than 150 mobile phones.
According to the investigation, the alleged leader of the organization, alias El Tapi, would reside in Dubai and would be in charge of financing the drug shipments that arrive in Spain. His right-hand man, Hassan M.M., would operate from Cadiz and would be in charge of directing and transmitting his instructions, according to documentation to which EFE has had access.
Another person identified as "Scorpion" allegedly managed high-speed boats loaded with drugs from Morocco and gave directives on the delivery location. He would have control of the narco-boats that have transported tons of cocaine to the Canary Islands and the Peninsula.
On the same rung would be the coordinators, responsible for guaranteeing entry through the mouths of the rivers, especially the Guadalquivir, and providing provisions to the vessels coming from the middle of the Atlantic.
Then there would be those responsible for the transport of the drug and the ground personnel who respond to orders from the coordinators, and below, the people who, without directly accessing the drug, would be in charge of alerting to the police presence or of giving an outlet to the profits from drug trafficking.
