Major Spanish Drug Ring Leaders Acquitted, Kingpin Sentenced in Hashish Trafficking Case

For lack of evidence, the 15 members of this network were acquitted. However, more than five kilos of drugs were found at Isco Tejón’s home in La Línea de la Concepción (Cadiz) in 2016. This drug would have been intended for distribution, argues the judge who sentenced the trafficker to three years and one month in prison, of which he has already served two years and seven months, and to pay a fine of more than 129,000 euros, reports El Cierre Digital.

In addition to the 15 members, the Cadiz court also acquitted Mohamed Said Ouardani, the alleged accountant of the network, as well as the three police officers accused of having helped the gang to introduce drugs into Spain. The network was led by the Badger brothers who managed to bring together six gangs that had been operating separately for years. In October 2016, their fortune, derived from hashish trafficking in the Campo de Gibraltar, was estimated at nearly 30 million euros.

"Los Castañas" became a powerful network, as it controlled nearly 70% of drug trafficking in the Strait of Gibraltar. The other gangs, including that of Moroccan Abdellah el Haj, alias "Messi", shared the remaining 30%. They served as intermediaries between Moroccan suppliers and Europe, providing them with "the infrastructure to transport, store and deliver drugs to buyers in Spain, France, Italy, etc.".