Civil Guard maritime unit has discovered almost two tons of cannabis hidden on scrub land on the Punta La Polacra in Níjar

Civil Guard maritime unit has discovered almost two tons of cannabis hidden on scrub land on the Punta La Polacra in Níjar. Ideal newspaper reports that a team from the Almería Civil Guard were inspecting the coastline from offshore last Friday, and decided a closer inspection from land was needed of the area of Carnaje Beach.
They found sixty one packages of the drug, amounting to 1,800 kilos of cannabis. Instruction Court No. 1 in Almería has been assigned to the investigation.

Mijas Diamond and Jewellery Centre raided

Three jewellery thieves have made off with a haul estimated to be between 8,000 € and 20,000 € from a shop in Mijas pueblo, the Mijas Diamond and Jewellery Centre. The owner of the store was inside when the hooded thieves attacked carrying hammers.
Dee Iglesias, co-owner of the store told Diario Sur that her husband had tried to detain one of the theives without success; he was thrown to the floor. Police say it was a professional operation with the thieves dressing as road workers and previously placing a no-entry sign in the Avenida de Méjico to ensure their getaway. A fourth member of the gang drove the getaway car which had been previously stolen and which was found shortly after the robbery.

Couple thought to have been dealing ecstasy on the Costa del Sol have been arrested

Couple thought to have been dealing ecstasy on the Costa del Sol have been arrested and police have seized a kilo of the drug.According to the National Police, the woman, 26, was caught with this haul in the bus station in Málaga this week.
Later investigations led to the arrest of a man aged 33 in Alcobendas (Madrid).
He is believed to have been supplying MDMA to the woman for resale.A raid on his flat revealed a further 84 grams of ecstasy plus other chemicals, a 40-centimetre machete and tools for creating the drugs.

Arrested one of the country's "most dangerous" fugitives

police arrested one of the country's "most dangerous" fugitives in raids early yesterday that netted at least 70 suspected members of the the Naples-based Camorra crime syndicate.Officers in the nearby southern city of Caserta said they held Franco Letizia shortly after midnight. He is suspected chief of the Bidognetti crime clan and is accused of running extortion rackets, police said.

Raffaele Amato, involved in a murderous turf war in the Camorra crime syndicate, was picked up Saturday in Marbella

Naples sweep follows the capture in the Spanish resort of Marbella Saturday of Raffaele Amato, an alleged Camorra boss who investigators say was one of Italy's top cocaine importers.Amato is accused of several murders dating back to the turf war that left more than a dozen people dead.Pisani said Tuesday's sweep against the Amato-Pagano clan also targeted illicitly gained wealth of Amato as well as other mobsters. Sky quoted investigators as saying assets were seized in Spain, Luxembourg, Germany and elsewhere in Europe.Raffaele Amato, involved in a murderous turf war in the Camorra crime syndicate, was picked up Saturday in Marbella, Naples prosecutor Giovandomenico Lepore said yesterday.Amato is accused of several homicides in a feud dating back to 1991 between two Camorra clans that left more than a dozen people dead. He was a top killer for boss Paolo Di Lauro, who was trying to keep control of the clan from rival Antonio Ruocco, Lepore said.Italian police arrested dozens of suspected members of the Naples-based Camorra crime syndicate, including a leading fugitive, in a pair of raids early Tuesday, authorities said Officers in the southern city of Caserta, some 20 miles (30 kilometers) from Naples, said they arrested Franco Letizia shortly after midnight in a home in a nearby town. Letizia is accused of running extortion rackets and is the suspected chief of the Bidognetti crime clan, police said.Investigators suspect Letizia, 31, took over the reins of the clan after the capture in January of Giuseppe Setola, who was considered the mastermind of a bloody crime spree last year to eliminate rivals as well as punish businessmen who refused to pay protection money to the Camorra.Arrested along with Letizia were two suspected mobsters accused of helping him elude capture. Letizia, who is on Italy's list of 100 most-dangerous fugitives, had been on the run for more than a year. Caserta police said they pinpointed his hideout in San Cipriano d'Aversa after several months of intercepting phone conversations.In a separate operation in Naples, police chief Vittorio Pisani said officers from several police forces were delivering a major blow to the Amato-Pagano clan, which was believed to have emerged victorious in a bloody turf war in the early 1990s with the Di Lauro crime family.

The Amato-Pagano clan is currently "the most powerful clan in the city," Pisani told Sky TG24 TV.

Carabinieri paramilitary police say more than 100 arrest warrants were issued, but it was too soon to say how many suspects have been captured because the raids were still continuing.By mid-morning, Defense Minister Ignazio La Russa said 35 suspects had been arrested in Naples and the surrounding countryside. The raids were dealing a "decisive blow against those responsible for hateful crimes, linked to international drug trafficking," La Russa said in a statement.The Naples sweep follows the capture in the

Spanish resort of Marbella Saturday of Raffaele Amato, an alleged Camorra boss who investigators say was one of Italy's top cocaine importers.

Amato is accused of several murders dating back to the turf war that left more than a dozen people dead.Pisani said Tuesday's sweep against the Amato-Pagano clan also targeted illicitly gained wealth of Amato as well as other mobsters. Sky quoted investigators as saying assets were seized in Spain, Luxembourg, Germany and elsewhere in Europe.

Pat McCadden to face Spanish court.

Pat McCadden walked free after being accused of shooting a police officer in Spain may still stand trial.Convicted drug dealer Pat McCadden, 42, was last week told by Judge Gonzalo Divar he would not face court.But a lawyer for the unnamed 36-year-old officer - shot in Marbella in 2003 - has appealed.
Three years ago McCadden was arrested and picked out of an identity parade by the officer, shot by two men who also shot British shop owner Luke Miller.Alleged getaway driver Paul Lesbirel - also picked out by the cop - was cleared last week.
A police source said: "An appeal has been lodged. The officer intends taking it as far as he can." Gangster McCadden claimed to be a businessman importing Italian shoes into Glasgow. He was jailed for 10 years in 1985 for smuggling more than £600,000 of heroin.His lawyer Javier Muriel said: "Pat wasn't the gunman, wasn't at the scene and he's maintained his innocence all along."

Bulgarian gangster Hristo Vasilev has been shot dead in public

Bulgarian gangster Hristo Vasilev has been shot dead in public in the town of Sant Joan Despi, Barcelona province, in Catalonia, Spain.The news has been reported by the Bulgarian 24 Chasa Daily, which cites the local newspaper El Periodico.
According to the reports, Vasilev was part of a gang of Eastern Europeans who committed robberies and luxury car thefts in Spain and France.The gang had committed a number of daring crimes including one occasion in the French city of Orleans where they held a whole family at gunpoint for several hours until the family opened a save.The gang was eventually busted by the Spanish police but Vasilev managed to get away. According to El Periodico, however, he was shot dead over drugs as he repeatedly stole drug shipments of competing Barcelona gangs.The murder was committed in public by a motorcyclist who chased Vasilev for several blocks.
Hristo Vasilev had been living in Spain for years, and even had Spanish citizenship. He had arrested a number of times for various crimes.At the time he was shot, Vasilev had no ID and was identified through a DNA analysis.

Pat the Rat, was arrested three years after the officer was gunned down in the Costa del Sol resort of Marbella.

Convicted drugs dealer Pat McCadden, 52, was celebrating yesterday after being told he will not face trial.The former shoe importer, nicknamed Pat the Rat, was arrested three years after the officer was gunned down in the Costa del Sol resort of Marbella.He spent nearly seven months on remand in jail before being released on bail while a judicial probe continued.A judge has now dismissed the case against the Glaswegian after witnesses failed to identify him and he was told DNA found in a getaway car used by the gunman did not match the Scot's.Judge Gonzalo Divar made the decision after a request to stay proceedings against McCadden by his lawyer Javier Muriel.Muriel said yesterday : "Pat is very pleased with the news."It's been a very long and painful process, with all the problems associated with being publicly identified in relation to such an unpleasant matter as this.

34 year old Salahidin E.N. from Holland shot to death in Pechina

Man found shot to death on a road in Pechina has been identified in the press as 34 year old Salahidin E.N. from Holland. Sources at central government offices in Almería told Europa Press he was shot once in the chest and was found by a routine Civil Guard patrol on the road to neighbouring Viator on Monday afternoon.Further information from EFE indicates he may have been shot from a moving vehicle. He is said to have had a criminal record from 2004 in Algeciras.

Police investigations revealed that the gang of smugglers were planning to bring the drugs onto the Málaga coast from Morocco

Eleven people are in custody after a police swoop on a property just off the A-7 motorway near Cajíz where almost a ton of cannabis was seized.Police investigations revealed that the gang of smugglers were planning to bring the drugs onto the Málaga coast from Morocco, and surveillance of the group discovered Almayate to be the point of entry. National Police in Málaga said in a press release on Wednesday that officers were waiting at the finca in Cajíz when the suspects arrived to unload the drugs. They had been brought over from Morocco in a boat which had set sail the day before.Together with the 900 kilos of cannabis, police seized a number of vehicles, some cash

Alicante ‘Lops Capito’ gangman died and another was seriously injured in a shooting

Man died and another was seriously injured in a shooting in the Juan XXIII district of Alicante city on Saturday afternoon.Police are investigating the motive for the attacks but they think it was related to drug trafficking.On their arrival at the scene SAMU medics could do no more than to declare a man in his 40’s, named with the initials L.I.P. as dead, while another aged 44 and identified as J.G.A.R. was taken to the General Hospital in the city after being shot it the throat and arm.Police say they are searching for a third person who could possibly have been the shooter and is a member of the ‘Lops Capito’ gang. The search has been opened up to other provinces across the country.Local residents have complained about the lack of security in the area, and noted that nobody came forward as a witness to what they may have seen.

Man wanted for an armed robbery in Barcelona province has been captured in El Ejido

Man wanted for an armed robbery in Barcelona province has been captured in a National Police operation in El Ejido which also took three members of his family into custody. The two women and another man are said to be his wife, mother and brother. They’re charged with selling cocaine and marijuana from their home and it’s understood that police found a large quantity of drugs and cash in a search of the property.The suspect in question was wanted in connection with an assault in Barcelona province, where four armed men stole the drugs being handed over in a deal in Gavá. They got away with two kilos of cocaine after a shootout in which no-one was injured.He’s reported to face three counts of attempted murder and one of illegal possession of weapons, along with a public health crime.

Raffaele Amato was detained in a joint operation by Italian and Spanish police in Marbella

Raffaele Amato was detained in a joint operation by Italian and Spanish police in the city of Marbella on Saturday. leader of the powerful Neapolitan-based mafia, the Camorra, has been arrested in southern Spain, Italian prosecutors have said.
Amato is accused of eight murders between 1991 and 1993, and of being "the principal, or one of the principal importers of cocaine into Italy". He had been living under a false name on the Costa del Sol, police said. The 44-year-old had been a fugitive from Italian justice since 2006, when a Naples court issued a warrant for his arrest for murder. Police said Amato had once been a key lieutenant of the alleged mafia godfather, Paolo Di Lauro, who was sentenced to 30 years in prison in 2006 for Mafia association, extortion and drug trafficking. However, about five years ago he led a successful breakaway from Di Lauro and took control of the narcotics market in Naples, they added.Raffaele Amato, considered to be one of the chiefs of the Napolitano Camorra Mafia, was arrested in Marbella on Saturday. EFE reports that the arrest took place in a joint Spanish and Italian police operation while the 44 year old man was dining with two members of his family in a restaurant.
Amato has been on the run from justice in Italy since 2006 and is accused of carrying out eight murders between 1991 and 1993.

Amy Fitzpatrick Mayor of Mijas should erect posters and billboards with Amy's photograph and details

Audrey Fitzpatrick said she was glad to have the opportunity to ask Ambassador Mercedes Rico in Dublin to assist in getting more action from the Spanish authorities. Amy was 15 when she disappeared in Spain on the night of January 1 last year. She left a friend's house to walk about one kilometre to her own home in Calahonda on the Costa De Sol but failed to arrive. The Dublin teenager had lived in Spain with her mother, brother and her mother's partner for some years since moving there from Ireland. A search by Spanish police, including the use of helicopters and tracker dogs, failed to find any trace of her. Audrey told the Herald she would ask the ambassador today to do what she could to persuade the local authorities in the Costa del Sol to erect posters and billboards with Amy's photograph and details in the hope it might lead to a breakthrough. "The local mayor said no when we asked him to put up billboards but we think they would be a great help. I got the idea when I saw billboards in Gran Canaria put up by the local council seeking information on a missing seven-year-old boy. "Our own mayor of Mijas should do the same for Amy," she said. The Dublin mother is also seeking help from the ambassador in her quest to have a meeting with the Spanish prime minister to appeal personally for more resources to be put into the investigation. She said both Bertie Ahern and Brian Cowen had met with her personally while taoiseach and she believed a personal meeting with the Spanish leader could help the search. Audrey and her partner Dave Mahon were scheduled to fly back to their home in Spain after today's meeting.

Mijas Costa 25 year old man had his throat cut on the Sitio de Calahonda development

25 year old man died in the early hours of this morning as a result of being injured in the throat with a knife in Mijas Costa according to the 061 emergency services.
Emergency service personnel were called to the Sitio de Calahonda development after being called by Civil Guards around 3 a.m. where they tried in vain to resuscitate the victim.The judge ordered that the body be removed and Civil Guards are now investigating the crime.

Estepona British couple attacked and man was stabbed twice in the back, piercing his kidney

National Police are investigating the brutal attack of a 50-year-old British tourist who was stabbed twice and hit over the head with a bottle by a gang of youths in Estepona on May 10.The attack took place when at approximately 4am the victim and a British woman were sitting by the seaside in an area which is frequented by young people who drink and socialise there at the weekends. For unknown reasons the victim was attacked by a group of North African youths who were only a few metres away. One of the youths approached the man and hit him over the head with a bottle. A second youth then stabbed him twice in the back, piercing his kidney.
The gang ran off while the woman managed to help the victim to Avenida España where they found a Local Police patrol.The victim was rushed to the Costa del Sol Hospital where he remains under observation. The police have now launched an investigation to try to identify and capture the group of violent attackers.This is the third case involving a knife attack in less than a week after a young man was stabbed in the Torrequebrada area of Benalmadena while he was stood in the front porch of his house.
In an isolated attack a few days earlier, a man was arrested for allegedly attacking his sister with a knife in Torremolinos. She sustained cuts to her hand.

National Police has broken up a network of 22 shops which sold manipulated and counterfeit games consoles across the country.

National Police has broken up a network of 22 shops which sold manipulated and counterfeit games consoles across the country. In the first operation of its type in Spain the police moved against the franchises which sold manipulated chips, compatible games cartridges and the counterfeit consoles in the provinces of Madrid, Sevilla, Valladolid, Málaga, Salamanca, Zamora, León, Gerona and Santiago de Compostela.Eight people have been arrested, including the man who set up the franchise system and more than 30,000 chips and other electronic material valued at 922,000 € has been impounded.

Alan McGregor Heron, 56, lives on the Costa del Sol,his Ferrari California was clocked in a radar trap travelling at 168mph in a 75mph zone

Alan McGregor Heron, 56, lives on the Costa del Sol,his Ferrari California was clocked in a radar trap travelling at 168mph in a 75mph zone on the A-92N motorway, police said adding that it was the highest speed ever recorded in the province.
Policeman clocked him at 159mph .A patrol car was dispatched and intercepted the Briton as he approached the town of Baza to the north east of Granada in the Sierra Nevada shortly after."It is rare to catch anyone driving at more than 200 kmph (124mph)," said a police spokesman. "But to reach the speed of this driver is completely unheard of."It is thought the car was brand new and was being driven with temporary plates issued in Spain.The expatriate, who police said keeps several expensive high cylinder cars at his home in Marbella, was fined 3,600 euros (£3,168) and had his driving licence confiscated.

Sarah Hunt,finally been jailed after more than four years hiding in Spain.

fraudster who siphoned off thousands of pounds in cash from two restaurants where she worked has finally been jailed after more than four years hiding in Spain.Sarah Hunt, who was also known as Sarah Hopkins, was thought to have fled to the Costa del Sol while awaiting trial for theft and false accounting charges in 2004.
But she was finally tracked down to the holiday resort of Malaga after police circulated her pictures on Crimestoppers UK Most Wanted site.She was jailed for 14 months at Birmingham Crown Court this week.Hunt, aged 34, from Tamworth, stole about £20,000 in takings from two restaurants in Star City, Nechells, and also at the Touchwood shopping centre, Solihull.

Eight Britons have been arrested for drug trafficking in Magaluf

Eight Britons have been arrested for drug trafficking in Magaluf.
The Guardia Civil in Palmanova on Mallorca say that those arrested acquired adulterated drugs, and then cut them some more before reselling them on in the clubs of Magaluf.The arrests were made in the early hours of Sunday, and a home was raided where quantities of cocaine, MDMA ecstasy and hashish was recovered along with some cash.The eight will appear in court shortly.

52 year old British neighbour,hurt as neighbour attempts suicide by Butane Gas

Woman who was injured in a gas explosion at her home on the N340 coast road in Almayate Bajo in the early hours of Tuesday has reportedly admitted that she purposely caused the blast in an attempt to commit suicide. She is said to have opened the valve on a butano gas bottle and then lit a cigarette.It came after an incident at her home in the early hours of Monday, where local police arrested her partner’s brother, 42 year old J.A.M.G. The woman, named by EFE as 37 year old N.E.R.P., told officers she had been sexually assaulted.Sheremains under treatment in the Carlos Haya Hospital in Málaga with superficial burns to 33 % of her body. Her 52 year old British neighbour, named by EFE as M.T.S., was also injured, but has already been discharged from hospital. His wife and two children escaped the explosion unhurt.Five other neighbours were evacuated as a precautionary measure while experts assess the damage caused to their houses. It’s understood that the house where the blast took place suffered considerable damage, and that a wall between that house and the British neighbour’s was destroyed.

Shooting in Rincón de la Victoria two arrested

The two men in custody are both Spaniards, and were picked up in the early hours of Tuesday, near the scene of the crime, EFE reports. A friend who saw what happened told the news agency that the motive was some sort of personal disagreement, and that the two accused, armed with a shotgun, had turned up at the same square on Saturday night but left when they were unable to find the person they were looking for.
Two men, both aged 21, have been arrested for a shooting in Rincón de la Victoria on Monday night where the victims, a man and a woman, were shot at as they were sitting in a square near the Casa de Cultura in La Cala del Moral. The weapon used is reported to be a shotgun.19 year old S.N.R. was injured in the abdomen and one of her arms, while her friend, 21 year old A.N.R., received injuries to his hands. Both are in the Carlos Haya Hospital in Málaga.

Benidorm a Portuguese man has been arrested for theft.

Benidorm a Portuguese man has been arrested for theft. He would break into the personal lockers of the staff in hotels in the town in search of cash and valuable items. He passed the items on to an Argentinean man who has also been detained.

Benidorm robbery of a branch of Bancaja

National Police in Benidorm has arrested two Bulgarian men in connection with the robbery of a branch of Bancaja in the town last March 22. The two are accused of making a hole in the wall of the bank on the Sunday, and after their arrest police also impounded a stolen Audi car, and a wide range of tools and other items used in robberies.

Charles Stabler,pensioner was attacked by a burglar at his Benalmádena home

Charles Stabler, 65,pensioner was attacked by a burglar at his Benalmádena home last month, has died of his injuries. The 65 year old had been in a coma in the Intensive Care Unit of Carlos Haya Hospital in Málaga, and is reported by Europa Press to have died last Friday, three weeks after the attack.
He never woke from a coma after being hit around the head last month.The burglar, who escaped with just two mobile phones and 30 euros (£27) in cash, fled after ransacking the apartment and setting it on fire.left Mr Stabler unconscious on the floor as flames took hold around him.A neighbour called emergency services after seeing smoke coming from the flat, in the seaside resort of Benalmadena.Police have arrested a 44-year-old Spaniard and he is being held in custody.He is thought to have followed Mr Stabler home from a local bar and forced his way in at around midnight on April 9.Mr Stabler spent three weeks in a coma in intensive care at the Carlos Haya hospital in Malaga.A spokeswoman for the hospital said: "Unfortunately Mr Stabler passed away in the intensive care unit on Friday." An investigating judge will rule on whether the suspect should face trial.

UDYCO specialist police unit 173 foreigners were arrested by the unit

UDYCO specialist police unit report for last year shows that there were more than 300 arrests linked to organized criminal groups in Málaga in 2008.173 foreigners were arrested by the unit, with 129 Spaniards and one person who was under-age. The unit is called in to act in cases linked to drugs and organized crime.
The number of extradition orders of people detained in the province remains on the increase.La Opinión de Málaga reports that the local chief prosecutor, Antonio Morales, considers that the times of high corruption on the Western Costa del Sol are now over and considers the UDYCO have become specialists in the fight against money laundering. Over last year they recovered 1.3 million € in cash and also 1.2 million in fake 500 € notes, as well as a large amount of different currencies.Last year the UDYCO report also shows a move into the use of the latest technology by the criminals. GPS transmitters and receivers, satellite communications systems, more laptops and frequency inhibitors, as well as hydraulic tools have all been impounded over the year.UDYCO chief on the Costa del Sol, Jesús Cachiero, who has been in the post for three months, said that it was evident that the criminal had evolved. He said most of his unit’s work was against foreign gangs who intended to spend their time on the costa unnoticed, and he said he was pleased with the successes seen by the unit so far this year also.

Fewer stay on the Costa del Sol 300,000 fewer overnight hotel stays

Málaga province has registered 300,000 fewer overnight hotel stays in the first three months of the year, compared to last. The number of stays in the province over January to March was 2,468,762, down 624,737 on last year’s numbers. However it should be noted that Easter fell in March last year, but the number is 20.1% down.Across Andalucía as a whole the quarter saw 6.603 million overnight stays, 1.6 million fewer than last year, down 19.5%.

Guardia Civil is investigating the death of a man in his 40’s whose body has been found in a rural area

Guardia Civil is investigating the death of a man in his 40’s whose body has been found in a rural area of Pego.
A burnt out car was some 800 metres away and the información newspaper reports that the body showed signs of violence.The forensics unit of the Guardia Civil from Javea are investigating and the case is being instructed by the courts in Denia ahead of an autopsy.The dead man lived in Pego, but is originally from Galicia, and it is thought that those who carried out the crime set fire to the victim’s car to get rid of any evidence to link them to the case. He went missing last Thursday, and his disappearance was reported by his family on Friday. The body was found on Saturday.
It’s not known yet whether the man died at the scene, or whether his body was dumped where it was found.

British pensioner who was attacked by a burglar at his Benalmádena home last month, has died of his injuries

British pensioner who was attacked by a burglar at his Benalmádena home last month, has died of his injuries. The 65 year old had been in a coma in the Intensive Care Unit of Carlos Haya Hospital in Málaga, and is reported by Europa Press to have died last Friday, three weeks after the attack.The assault took place in a block of flats on Calle Levante on the Alegranza Urbanisation when the victim returned home from a local bar and was assaulted by a man later identified as F.C.J., a 44 year old Spaniard. The suspect set the flat alight before making his escape, leaving the victim inside. He stole items amounting to a value of no more than 30 €.F.C.J. was arrested on Monday last week and is currently being held on remand.

International manhunt is under way to trace a Bradford man suspected of conspiracy to murder.

Raymond Daniels, 39, extradited from Marbella in Spain, where he had moved to in 2007, last December to face the drugs charges. Now he is feared to have fled abroad, although detectives also think he could be hiding in the UK. has not been seen since walking free from court in March when a judge threw out drugs conspiracy charges against him. Daniels, of Drighlington, is wanted for questioning about a conspiracy to murder Mohammed Nissar Khan – one of his co-defendants on the drugs allegations. But he disappeared after an application to dismiss charges of conspiracy to supply heroin, against Daniels, Khan and three other men and allegedly involving £750,000 of the drug, was granted by Judge Roger Scott at Bradford Crown Court on March 6. The decision was upheld by a High Court judge after a challenge by the Crown Prosecution Service.
Daniels had been in custody awaiting trial in April on the drugs charges, but was released when they were dismissed. Two Bradford men, Christopher Fletcher, 46, and his nephew James Fletcher, 25, were arrested and charged in January with conspiring with Daniels, between June 2007 and May 2008 to murder Mohammed Nissar Khan. They are in custody and due to face trial in July. Daniels, who has links to the travelling community, had not been charged with the murder conspiracy because detectives were awaiting the consent of the Spanish authorities, under extradition laws. That approval came two days after he had been freed from the drugs charges. Detectives in West Yorkshire Police’s Organised Crime Group are checking up on possible leads following a national appeal on BBC’s Crimewatch programme last week. Detective Chief Inspector John Hoyle urged anyone with information about Daniels’s whereabouts to come forward. He said: “Although Raymond Daniels is not a danger to the public in general, if anyone does recognise him they should not approach him but inform the police at once.

“We feel somebody must have assisted him. He has links throughout the country and in Spain and if anyone has information about where he is we are anxious to hear from them.”

Speaking of the drugs allegations, Det Chief Insp Hoyle said: “We presented the evidence to the Crown Prosecution Service, which decided there was sufficient evidence to go before the courts.

“It’s unfortunate that this judgement came before we were able to charge him with conspiracy to murder.”