Last week's raids by the National Police in the Son Banya shanty town in Palma were the culmination of "Operación Tanque", which the police say has led to the dismantling of the main cocaine supply network for the clans which operate in Son Banya.
This network was for the El Moreno clan, the brother of the notorious La Paca and the Los Valencianos. Members of the latter have been in Son Banya for a number of years, and as their name suggests they have links with Valencia. Police had established that there were contacts between Los Valencianos and other gangs which involved a builder who is based in Majorca and Valencia and who is also a member of this clan.
There were three phases to the operation. The first was in September when two women were arrested. They were hiding quantities of cocaine at a premises in the centre of Palma. Police seized five kilos of the drug in a raid on this property. The second phase was when police intercepted a shipment from the mainland. This was sent via a delivery company. Two kilos of cocaine plus some 50,000 euros cash were found in drums of chlorine. A man and woman, members of Los Valencianos, were arrested.
The third phase was last week's action in Son Banya. Nine properties were raided. Sales points for cocaine and heroin were dismantled and police seized cash, high-end vehicles and quantities of drugs. A woman and her daughter, members of El Moreno, were arrested as was a Paraguyan man.
Police calculate that over the past year there were more than one hundred shipments of drugs, amounting to around 125 kilograms of cocaine, which came into Majorca.