Bulgarian bandit groups in Malaga
"The organized Bulgarian bandit groups dealing with car thefts get involved more and more seriously into the coca traffic coming from South America. Just in Malaga, Marbella, Benalmadella and Toremolinos act 5-6 such bands formed by Bulgarians. They are very closely connected with the Columbian cartels and very active as well.", Alfledo Marihuan, a Director of "Criminal department" in Malaga says for "168 hours" weekly and adds: "Approximately 20 Bulgarians are arrested in Malaga after they had been captured with different quantity of coca starting from 1 and reaching 50 kilos. The arrested people are mules. We have almost no information about their bosses, but soon will bring them into the spot light."
According to Alfredo Marihuan, the Bulgarians in Latin America are in touch with the people responsible for the Distribution in Europe. Our countrymen constantly travel to Columbia and Venezuela. They negotiate the deals and organize the transport of the shipments to Spain and Europe. "This tendency was proven once again by the six Bulgarians we detained with 819 kilos of coca in February in Soto Grande and Barcelona.", Alfredo Marihuan says.
More than 1000 Bulgarian car thieves are listed into the card indexes of the Spanish police. They have been arrested and released in numerous police operations. This forces them to look for a new path where they are still not popular, hence not known for the police. They've already tried the robberies, blackmails, trafficking of cars, arms and hashish. The car thieves are doing everything within their power and use all their international contacts in order to gain a share from the coca business. In this field the earnings are bigger, but the risks lower having in mind that on the Spanish territory roam about all types of international mugs. During the negotiations between the Bulgarians and the Columbians for 819 kilos of white dust our countrymen do not even think that the special services are already follow their footprints. A mysterious killing refers the police toward the Bulgarian group.
On February 26, 2004 at Tampiko Str. in Madrid a man is speaking inside a phone cabin. Two men on motorcycles come close to him. They pull out submachine guns and open fire. The man dies covered with from 10 bullets. The two assassins run away. In the victim's passports there is a text:
Gusepe Loro from Venezuela
The passport turns out a forged one. The Spanish cops verify the picture of the victim with their albums. They ascertain that in 2001 the Bulgarian special police services had been forwarded the picture of the same person. The Bulgarian Ministry of Internal Affairs informs them that he is engaged with coca traffic of vast size. After he is killed the Spanish cops send an inquiry to Bulgaria and dactyl scoped marks from the victim's car. The expertise shows that the killed one is Dimo Neikov Jelev, born on 7 August, 1967 in Karapelit village, Dobrich region.
Jelev's adventures - the hidden skull-cap
Still in 1993-1994 Dimo Jelev gets into the field of vision of the Bulgarian special services. His start up in the cocaine business coincides with the genesis of the Bulgarian drug organization in Bulgaria. In the beginning of 90's Jelev is a lone wolf and he does not participate in grouping. He repeatedly closes the ways between Bulgaria and Turkey. From a huckster he evolves to a drug mule. He travels all over Europe. In Vienna he draws together with Kuzman Guslekov - a drug Traficant shoot dead in 1999 in Sofia because of 600 kilos Columbian coca that disappeared mysteriously. At this time Guslekov yet had been released from an Austrian prison when he had served a sentence, he had introduced in the cocaine business and lives like a citizen of the world. In 1995 Dimo Jelev is detained in Austria for heroin traffic. He receives an effective sentence. For several months period Jelev digs a tunnel and manages to escape from the prison. He hides in different European countries. He is caught in Switzerland. Then he is extradited to Austria where he serves his fulltime sentence. Dimo Jelev leaves the prison and goes to Spain with Kuzman. Guslekov gives shelter to him at his big house in Marbella - at this time the late drug dealer is in warm relations with high-standing persons from the cartels. Guslekov gets Jelev into the schemes. He starts to organize cruises with yachts between Spain, Columbia and Venezuela. He has at least 10-12 forged passports. The close friends around Kuzman and Dimo form an international group from Bulgarians, Spaniards, Italians, English men and Russians. The main investor of the group is Misha - a Jew from a Russian origin. He is indecently rich, an owner of a palace in Marbella and unique yacht, where he often welcomes Guslekov. During an ordinary row in the high seas
Misha is executed
but his yacht blew up. Mass arrests of members of the group in Marbella follow. Italians and Spaniards are detained for drug trafficking, their bank accounts and property are pit in an execution. Kuzman Guslekov gets away with it. Later he comes back to Bulgaria. In his Sofia circle are the late Poly Pantev, Bai Mile, Robert Stefanov, Serbian bandits close to the terrorist Sreten Yosich. In the end of 99's continually to Kuzman is also Konstantin Dishliev, shoot dead with 10 bullets on May 14 this year in front of an Indian restaurant "Tadj Mahal" in Sofia.
"At the end of 90's Kuzman gets Konstantin Dishliev into the schemes for money laundry of resources coming from Spain. He helps him to become a boss in the leasing business", a close friend to the late Guslekov says for 168 hours daily. "A man of confidence in the group was also Dishliev's brother-in-low Brendo, who also has strong positions among the Bulgarian car thieves and cocaine dealers in Spain." After Gislekov's murder the organization continues to exist.
In 2001 Dimo Jelev from Dobrich comes back to Bulgaria after almost 10 years spent abroad. He makes tours around the disco clubs in Varna and Sunny Beaches with his Porsche Kayen. He renames himself from Dimo Dimitrov to Dimcho Jelev. He actively travels between Spain, Venezuela and Columbia. Each time he spends there between 4 and 6 months. Bulgarian special services catch up Jelev in a hot connection with a group from Varna and Pleven, occupied with thefts of cars, a group leaded by Ivan Paunov-Govanito and Ivo Birovski - The Box.
"The organization has structures in Spain and in Bulgaria and is active in the car and hashish traffic. Since 2000 it enters also in the cocaine business. The trafficking of the elite drug becomes priority for the organization in the latest years.", a top official from the Internal Ministry says for 168 hours weekly.
Bulgarian special policemen inform their Spanish colleagues that Dimo Jelev is dealing with trafficking of coca in large quantity. His false identity secures him anonymity until the day of the shooting down.
The Spanish policemen discover a Columbian trace in the attempt, but can't prove it. The murder remains undiscovered. Shortly before the shooting of Dimcho Jelev the cops catch
2 tons of cocaine
in an uninhabitable accommodations in Madrid. The warehouse is next to Jelev's apartment. Another 150 kilos of cocaine are found by the cops in the neighboring accommodation. Witnesses claim they've seen him round about. Each time he had appeared in groups of two or three men. The dealer is punished, after somebody's refusal to pay for the detained shipments of coca, shows one of the leading versions for his killing.
Special policemen start to investigate Jolev's connections. After his killing his mobile phone had registered missed calls from Bulgaria. In Jelev's apartment a note book is found. All his accounts - debit and credit are strictly listed in it, by the victim himself. He mentions also specific names and figures. The police find as well his phone book. He had had a colorful contact list - Bulgarians, Spaniards, Columbians and Venezuelans. The net connected with the late Jelev starts to brighten up. His friends do not suspect they are already in the daylight.
One year later
Bulgarian-Spanish organization plans his serial hit with coca. "Such well equipped and structured Bulgarian organization in Spain we detain for the first time.", Eloy Alvares, Director of Drug traffic department in Judicial police in Madrid comments for 168 hours weekly. The project started with the investigation of the Bulgarian group in Barcelona. We discovered that some of their members had taken on houses and offices by the side of the port located between Malaga and Cadis. The rent contracts were signed on behalf of a company headquartered in Gibraltar. We used to watch the group. We understood they are ready to transfer with a yacht a huge quantity of cocaine from Columbia to the sea cost of Costa del Sol. The itinerary, chosen from the Bulgarian is unusual. The seacoast of Costa del Sol is used mainly for trafficking of hashish coming from Morocco through the strait of Gibraltar towards Spain. "Cocaine" yachts sail mainly from Venezuela to Martinique Island, but the fishing ships loaded with a larger quantity of drugs turn to Galicia."
"We've expected the cocaine to move from Malaga towards Barcelona and after towards another European country.", a participant in the police action comments. "All men on the yacht were from Varna. Several times the yacht had changed its name in the open sea.", the same source adds.
The cops loose the yacht's traces. It is discretely laid at Soto Grande, located at 70 kilometers from Marbella.
Bulgarian Investigative Journalism Center (BIJC) is an nongovernmental and uncommercial foundation, whose main goal is to organize and produce journalistic inquiries against the corruption and the organised crime. BIJC popularize the investigative journalism in Bulgaria and in the European Union.The foundation unites bulgarian journalists with experience in the area of the investigative journalism.
