A family-run drug supply business has been shut down in Torrrevieja, with a 61-year-old grandmother being the eldest, along with her 16-year-old grandson and her daughter (mother of the 16-year-old boy).
The boy was the face of the operation, first selling drugs to his classmates, then expanding his sales network to other young people in the town.
The investigation began in April when officers from the Guardia Civil were made aware of the drugs being sold to students in the local school. The substances that the minors bought were marijuana, hashish and, sometimes, cocaine, so the officers instigated an investigation with the support of the Office of the Children’s Prosecutor of Alicante.
The principal suspect was a young man, 15-years-old at the time, who was studying at the same institute, although as the investigation progressed he was expelled for disciplinary reasons, unrelated to drug trafficking.
At the start of the investigation, the sales circle the boy operated in was “quite small”, according to the investigators, however, once he was expelled his entrepreneurial skills developed and he started to expand to other young people in the town.
In the four months that the investigation lasted, the officers discovered that the boy was no longer alone in his business, and had also started to employ the skills of other family members, as he got his mother and grandmother involved, selling from the family home, which then became the centre of the operation.
Like all good businesses, a structure had to be put in place, and so mother became the purchasing manager, in charge of buying the narcotic substances, storing them and hiding them at the home. In addition, she was the one who monitored the market and fixed the sale price, so that her son could be left to focus on sales, most of which were to minors.
In general, he made sales by order, travelling to deliver the goods to the buyer, having made contact via phone or message.
Granny was apparently “aware” of all of the activities, and collaborated on some occasions to make certain sales.
Once the investigators had sufficient evidence to accredit the accusations, they decided to detain these three people, and made a search of the home. Inside they found more than 160 grams of marijuana, arranged in doses for sale, several grams of cocaine, cash and five mobile phones used to contact customers.
The granny and mum were brought before the courts where they were remanded in custody, whereas the child, now aged 16, was placed under the protection of the Office of Minors in Alicante.
