Marbella: The Global Hub for International Drug Gangs and Crime – A Decade of Unbalanced Growth, Violence, and Fear

No one knows exactly when and by whom it happened, the election of Marbella as the hotspot where an international drug gang must have representation if you want to matter. The Spanish police still wanted to indicate a starting point. This is useful for making comparisons between before and after the arrival of the drug gangs. That starting point became August 28, 2014.

On that day, Samir B., the brother of the now arrested Karim, was liquidated near Marbella. For the Spanish police, this liquidation looked different than what they were used to. There were innocent people standing close to Samir B. when the shooting started at him, more shots were fired than was necessary to kill him and B. himself had just come from a business meeting with other underworld figures.

For the Spanish police, August 28, 2014 was the day on which they realized that ruthless internationally operating drug criminals had also established themselves in Spain and that the Dutch were important there. The Spanish police assume that Dutch people have worked their way into every Spanish drug organization.

In an analysis, the police department that monitors the drug world reports: “The Dutch operate fearlessly and have their own rules.”

It is now almost ten years later. Marbella has become the global center for international drug gangs. The Spanish Coordinator against Terrorism and Organized Crime believes that 113 criminal organizations from 59 different countries have established themselves in or near Marbella. The city was given nicknames such as ‘UN of the underworld’ and ‘Costa del Gangsters’, but behind it lie major problems.

Unbalanced growth and violence

Everything is growing crooked very quickly in Marbella. Marbella has almost 4,000 houses with a sales price above one million euros. Even the capital Madrid has fewer such super expensive houses. Marbella, the 71st city in Spain with almost 150,000 inhabitants, tops the list of the most unsafe places in the country. It varies depending on the intensity of gang wars, but a year with 20 murders, such as in 2018, occurs in Marbella. Kidnappings happen with great regularity.

Crime journalist Andros Lazano wrote the book ‘Costo’ about the situation in and around Marbella. Even the underworld has changed due to the arrival of organized drug gangs, he says: “There is no other type of crime than drug crime around Marbella anymore. Even if you think you have found a group of car thieves, it turns out that they are stealing the cars on behalf of the drug criminals.”

Knowledge from the past

Rounding up all the gangs is, according to Lazano, an impossible task. “I have the impression that the police have a fairly good idea of ​​who is operating in Marbella. What helps is that the Spanish police still have a lot of knowledge from the time of the attacks by the terrorist movement ETA, about how to deal with such complex organizations. can follow international contacts. Once they have an image of the gangs, the police’s first goal is not to allow the gangs to grow too strongly.”

The answer to the question of why every drug gang that matters, or wants to matter, in the world also started operating in Marbella can be seen when you walk through the city to the sea. On clear days you can see Morocco, the world’s largest hashish producer, from Marbella. Across the water there are also two Spanish enclaves on African territory, Ceuta and Melilla. Those parts of Spain in Africa are useful for criminals.

British territory of Gibraltar

On nice days you can also see another point from Malaga, the British overseas territory of Gibraltar, with its characteristic rock. Criminals use Gibraltar for tax evasion and smuggling. Crime journalist Andros Lazano: “Few questions are asked at the border crossing. Gangs naturally take advantage of that.”

There are two more reasons. Less than an hour’s drive from Marbella is one of Europe’s main ports of entry for cocaine smuggling, in the town of Algeciras. The mountains of Granada, just north of Marbella, are Europe’s most important region for marijuana cultivation.

Discontent is starting to grow in Marbella. According to many residents, the presence of the underworld is becoming too visible, for example when guards with automatic weapons walk around the city harbor on a criminal’s yacht. The continued setting up of companies to launder criminal money is also causing anger. Residents want a stop to the increasing mixing of the underworld and the upper world.

Shut up

Crime journalist Lazano sees few drivers who dare to do anything in this regard. “Mayors and other administrators feel that measures against gangs can have consequences for themselves, their families and their children. There is only one mayor in this entire region who says and does things fearlessly. Gangs are not happy about that, but he is there the only one.”

2024-01-28 11:35:43


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