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MORE than 20 heavily armed police officers raided a property next to the notorious Son Banya settlement, and after an intensive search found the hiding place where it is thought 1.2 million euros had been stashed, and from where it was allegedly stolen by members of a rival clan. One man was arrested. The search was authorised by a Palma court, and the police arrived in five vans with full logistic support, giving residents of Son Banya and the owner of the property no time to react. Although the property is run down, it has a stable with well cared for horses.
After searching the buildings, the officers concentrated on the orchard, and eventually found a large hole which was camouflaged. It is believed that the 1.2 million euros was the proceeds of drugs and was stolen by members of a rival gang. The robbery unleashed a wave of reprisals, allegedly including kidnapping and torture, and a dozen people were arrested.
The police recovered 700'000 euros from a security box in a Palma bank, but the whereabouts of the rest of the money is unknown.
The officers withdrew from the settlement shortly after 1pm. According to some reports, since the robbery on April 17, there has been an unprecedented split among the residents of the settlement, one of the centres of the drug trade. More than 100 police took part in a raid at Son Banya last month, arresting 22 alleged members of two drug trafficking gangs, thought to be responsible for introducing more than ten kilos of cocaine into the island every ten days. Twelve kilos of cocaine, weapons, jewellery and documents were seized during the raid.