The two men were jailed for being the “chief mentors” of an alleged drug trafficking ring in the municipality of Ribeira Grande in the Azores, in an operation to “destroy the respective criminal cell”, which was revealed to the PSP on Monday.
The Azores Regional Command PSP said in a statement that, according to the investigation, the alleged criminal network consisted of “six defendants” currently arrested and present in court, who were allegedly involved in synthetic drug trafficking. along with “several drug addicts living in various districts of the municipality of Ribeira Grande” on the island of Sao Miguel.
This alleged network, according to the PSP, has reached “significant proportions as criminal activity has spread from Ribeirinha County to Fenais da Ajuda.”
The PSP regional command in the Azores said that of the six detainees, two were in “preventive detention” and two were under coercive “house arrest” because they were the “most active” collaborators in the alleged crime. network, and two other suspects are required to “mandatory presentation before the authorities.”
According to police, the six men arrested are between 27 and 39 years old and are “severely charged with drug trafficking.”
Police investigations have been ongoing for “more than a year” and the investigations point to “the existence of a drug trafficking cell operating in the municipality of Ribeira Grande,” adds the PSP Regional Command.
The arrest of the suspects led to “a large-scale police operation involving about fifty police officers, forensic experts and dog handlers from the PSP and CHR, which allowed “several searches of houses to be carried out at the same time.” and cars of the suspects.
As a result of the police operation, “a significant amount of synthetic drugs, 18,000 euros in cash, three cars and other items related to the criminal activities of the defendants” were found and seized, adds PSP.
The Azores Regional Command emphasizes the importance of the results obtained during the investigation, as they allowed “to eliminate the relevant criminal cell associated with the sale of one of the types of drugs that has the greatest negative impact on the health of users.” as well as for “safety indicators” from the municipality of Ribeira Grande, “heavily affected by this type of crime.”