Four people aged 23 to 28 years have been detained in Torrevieja for the suspected distribution and sale of explosives, during a high profile investigation known as ‘Operation Palmera’. Agents of the National Police intercepted almost 20 kilos of goma- 2, thought to have been stolen from a quarry in the Vega Baja area sometime ago. Goma-2 is a gelatinous, Nitroglycol-based explosive manufactured within Spain for industrial use. The substance was favoured for terrorist attacks carried out by ETA during the 1980’s and 1990’s and is also the explosive allegedly used in the Madrid train bombings of 11th March 2004. Investigations were opened when the Department received information that an organized crime ring, comprising mainly of Eastern European nationals, intended to purchase explosives for use during robberies. The first series of enquiries resulted in the arrest of two Spaniards, aged 24 and 28 years, who were accosted on the day that the exchange was scheduled to take place, carrying a rucksack containing half a kilo of explosives. A second pair of Spaniards, aged 23 and 27 years, was subsequently arrested under suspicion of collaborating with the other two, as “runners” in the transfer of the explosives.
During the investigation, Agents executed two house searches in Torrevieja, where an additional 9.5 kilos of goma-2 and a detonator were also uncovered. The band had hidden a further 7.5 kilos in a hole beneath a palm plantation at the ‘Granja de Rocamora’ farm, divided into several small packages surrounded by plastic bags. The stash was eventually uncovered with the help of the specialist Police Dog Unit from the National Police Headquarters
The defendants were initially presented before the Custody Officer of ‘Juzgado nº1 de Torrevieja’, who ruled that the four suspects be detained in prison without granting bail, and will be tried later by the ‘Juzgado de Primera Instancia Número 5 de Torrevieja’. The Sub-Delegate of the Valencian Government, Encarna Llinares, and the Provincial Commissioner for Alicante, Enrique Durán, appeared before the court to explain the details of the case, presenting a selection of the packages that the Agents had confiscated as evidence. Finally, the Councillor for Police and Security of Torrevieja City Council, Tomás Arenas Buenas, assured citizens that there was no great cause for concern and gave his word that the matter would be addressed promptly and accurately. He also dismissed reports that the explosives have been used in previous attacks carried out in the area.
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