Until recently, Oscar Sanchez Gil was head of the fraud and anti-money laundering division of Spain's national police force. Now, he's being held on charges of drug trafficking, money laundering, corruption, and membership in a criminal group, along with his romantic partner. During a probe into Spain's largest-ever cocaine bust, investigators raided the home shared by Sanchez Gil and his partner, a fellow police officer, in Alcala de Henares, about 18 miles northeast of Madrid, finding more than $21 million in cash hidden inside the walls and ceilings, plus another $1 million locked in cupboards in Gil's office, AFP reports.
Police tied the raid to the seizure of 14 tons of cocaine hidden among bananas that arrived in the southern port of Algeciras from Guayaquil, Ecuador, in October. Police said it was "one of the largest seizures in the world," per AFP. The bananas were to be sent to an importer in the Spanish city of Alicante "who had been receiving large quantities of fruit imported from Ecuador for years," per authorities. Investigations in Madrid and Alicante ultimately uncovered links between the importer and Sanchez Gil, according to Spanish media reports.
According to El Mundo's reporting, Sanchez Gil first made contact with drug traffickers while leading the national police's narcotics division before allegedly offering tips on how to avoid checks in Spanish ports. The father of three in his 40s is suspected of working for drug traffickers for "at least five years," providing information about the surveillance of containers, sources tell the outlet. Police sources allege the cash seized from the home of Sanchez Gil and his partner were the proceeds from years spent collaborating with criminal gangs, per Euronews. The couple were arrested last week alongside 15 others. They were remanded in custody at a court hearing, the Local reports. (More Spain stories.)
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