The Mossos d’Esquadra have arrested three men and one woman accused of crimes against public health and electricity fraud.
The Mossos d’Esquadra have carried out an operation between yesterday and today to dismantle two marijuana plantations located inside apartments in the Joan Carles Blocks of the Mariola neighborhood in Lleida. During the police operation, four people were arrested: three men and one woman, as confirmed by SEGRE.
The detainees include a 41-year-old man, accused of home invasion and public health crimes, and two men and one woman, aged between 31 and 34, suspected of public health crimes. The apartments where the plantations were found are located in a block on Vitòria Street and were illegally connected to the electricity supply.
The operation began yesterday following a fight in one of the apartments. When officers arrived at the scene, they detected a strong smell of marijuana coming from one of the rooms. Upon entering, they discovered the plantation and proceeded to dismantle one of them, while the second was taken down today.
Hundreds of plants and cuttings seized
During the searches, the Mossos found hundreds of small marijuana plants and cuttings being cultivated illegally in these homes. They also found the necessary infrastructure for cultivation, a scale, and various materials for selling and distributing the product.
The operation involved the Mossos d’Esquadra Investigation Unit, members of the Regional Operational Resources Area (ARRO), and public safety officers.
Attempt to move the plants elsewhere
Hours after the first operation ended, a patrol caught a group of people loading bags of marijuana into a van parked in front of the same building. Officers were able to stop one of the men, but two men and a woman ran back inside and locked themselves in one of the apartments.
When the police broke into the apartment, they found that all rooms were set up for marijuana cultivation, and the suspects had escaped through the façade, entering an apartment on the upper floor. Eventually, under police pressure, they surrendered and were arrested as suspected perpetrators of a public health crime. Inside the van, 21 bags containing about a hundred plants, approximately 60 centimeters tall, were found.
