On Wednesday morning, almost two hundred Guardia Civil officers were engaged in a major operation against the sale and distribution of drugs. Operation "Llamps" was the result of an investigation by the elite organised crime squad and by the criminal police units in Algaida and Manacor.
There were actions in various parts of Majorca - Cala Ratjada and Capdepera, Inca, Manacor and Palma, where Son Gotleu is one centre. At first light, some twenty properties in Son Gotleu and Pere Garau in Palma plus ones in the other locations were simultaneously raided. The key raids were in Palma, where two major drug outlets were shut down.
The 193 officers involved in the operation included 75 who had come from the mainland to lend support to the operation, a common practice when major counter drugs operations are carried out in Majorca.
By Wednesday evening, some 20 people had been arrested, but the operation remains very much alive and further arrests are expected to be made over the coming days. During the raids, heavily armed officers found varying amounts of heroin and cocaine along with substantial amounts of cash, said to be the takings by the drug dealers.
The simultaneous operation took less than hour. Eyewitnesses said that they heard the noise of vehicles parking up and the next thing, armed officers were surrounding and storming into targeted properties. The majority of those arrested are apparently Moroccans, although a number of Spaniards and other north Africans were also detained and taken away for questioning.
This was the third major counter drugs operation of the year in Majorca and is all part of an ongoing investigation into drugs smuggling and dealing across Majorca. The previous operations were carried out in Soller, Pollensa and Puerto Alcudia and are apparently all connected.