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Date Published: 03/02/2023

British drug lord arrested in Benidorm to be extradited to the UK

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The 41-year-old captured on the Costa Blanca was behind amphetamine laboratories in Wales and Merseyside

British drug lord arrested in Benidorm to be extradited to the UK

A British fugitive wanted in the UK for major drug offences who was arrested at a routine traffic checkpoint in Benidorm last September will be extradited following a ruling by Spain's National Court.

The 41-year-old from Dewsbury in West Yorkshire was a key member of a UK drugs ring that ran amphetamine laboratories in North Wales and Merseyside, and was subject to an international arrest warrant after he fled to Spain. In one of the factories, enough chemicals were found to 'cook' 3,000 kilos of the drug.

He, along with 14 other gang members, is also accused of manufacturing and supplying cocaine, heroin, cannabis and ketamine. Narcotics with a retail value of 1.3 million euros were seized during raids in 2019, and police thwarted plans to produce more drugs worth 2.1 million euros.

The Brit's luck ran out when officers from the National Police's Prevention and Reaction Unit inadvertently caught up with the elusive criminal while carrying out a daily prevention checkpoint near Benidorm's theme park area last September.

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His identity was checked and revealed he was wanted by British authorities for seven drug related crimes. The ring used code names to communicate, and the British detainee was known as 'lightning fork', which UK police believe proves he was "a key member of the group".

Spain's National Court in Madrid signed the 41-year-old's extradition order at the end of December, but details have only just been made public.

The ruling reads: "The downloading of coded material shows that he acted as a conduit between other key members of the group: he sent instructions, set meetings, managed the use of transport and logistics....attended the North Wales factory, provided and supplied precursor chemicals for the production of amphetamine, assisted with equipment in the factory, and was involved with the supply and importation of Class A and Class B narcotic substance."

Other news: Spanish police shut down most active international drug ring in Europe with arrests in Malaga

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