There are 440 organised crime groups currently operating in
Spain, according to the Guardia Civil and the National Police here. For the whole of Europe, there are about
3,600 such groups. A sobering thought.
Ten of those identified in Spain are considered ‘high
intensity’ groups, which translates as having at least twenty members operating
for more than three years, are trans-national and are poly-criminals – (the
latter has nothing to do with the theft of parrots, but means the individuals
are involved in one main criminal activity but also linked to others).
Such operations can have large complex networks, extending
across borders (where border controls apply, please note, EU). They often
operate under an apparent cover of legitimacy.
One example is a 40-year-old Spanish businessman in the
construction industry who was arrested for running a money-laundering network
in tandem with drug trafficking. Other similar groups deal in fraud as well as
drug trafficking, illegal immigration, prostitution, burglaries and car theft.
Such a poly-criminal group can be found in the pages of Blood of the Dragon Trees.
“Laura
Reid likes her new job on Tenerife, teaching the Spanish twins Maria and
Ricardo Chávez. She certainly doesn’t want to get involved with Andrew Kirby
and his pal, Jalbala Emcheta, who work for CITES, tracking down illegal traders
in endangered species. Yet she’s undeniably drawn to Andrew, which is
complicated, as she’s also attracted to Felipe, the brother of her widower
host, Don Alonso.
“Felipe’s
girlfriend Lola is jealous and Laura is forced to take sides – risking her own
life – as she and Andrew uncover the criminal network that not only deals in
the products from endangered species, but also thrives on people trafficking.
The pair are aided by two Spanish lawmen, Lieutenant Vargas of the Guardia
Civil and Ruben Salazar, Inspector Jefe del Grupo de Homicidios de las
Canarias.
“Very
soon betrayal and mortal danger lurk in the shadows, along with the dark deeds
of kidnapping and clandestine scuba diving…”
See the reviews on Amazon.
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