The man arrested by the Judicial Police in Madeira in possession of 14.260 kilos of heroin and nine kilos of ‘ecstasy’ was remanded in custody, a source from the Court of the autonomous region indicated today.
After the first judicial interrogation, the criminal investigating judge also applied the coercive measures of identity and residence restrictions and a ban on contact with people linked to the case, and the defendant is indicted for the crime of drug trafficking.
The suspect, aged 28 and of Portuguese nationality, has no criminal record, according to the Judicial Police (PJ) on Wednesday, and was arrested as part of the “Anniversary” operation, which culminated in the largest heroin seizure ever in Madeira, and also the largest of the year nationwide.
According to the PJ, responsible for the operation, the 14,260 kilos of heroin and the nine kilos of MDMA, commonly known as ‘ecstasy’, were hidden in a car already in circulation on the island.
The driver was arrested “due to strong evidence of drug trafficking”, and is currently the only defendant in the case.
On Wednesday, the PJ regional coordinator, Ricardo Tecedeiro, said in a press conference that the investigation “will have new developments” and that “further steps” will be taken.
“The investigation will now aim to identify other people, in addition to the one who was detained, and to collect evidence and determine the degree of participation of each of the people after they are identified, if we are able to do so,” he added.
The Judiciary Police do not yet know the origin of the drug, nor its commercial value, although the estimate points to several million euros, considering that one gram of heroin corresponds to 12 individual doses, whose price varies between 40 and 50 euros each.