Cocaine cartel wars: Dismembered bodies in bags, bosses’ eyes shot by own hit men
It’s the party island hotspot for thousands of tourists, but whistleblowers have now exposed the deadly drug gangs that have emerged.
It’s known as Europe’s best party island with tens of thousands of tourists flocking to the hotspot every year.
But behind Ibiza’s party culture and rampant drug demand lies a deadly conflict among international gangs vying for a share of the $180 billion global trade.
In Ibiza Narcos, a new three-part Sky documentary, locals reveal how dismembered bodies have been found near tourist areas while British enforcer recounts surviving a gunshot to the head.
In another revelation, a former Spanish smuggler confesses to stealing cocaine from rivals and police.
Last October, undercover police dismantled a Colombian network using lorry drivers to deliver cocaine, marijuana and ecstasy to the Balearic island, while in 2022 British expats were arrested in a crackdown on the dealing of pink cocaine.
However, cops believe they’re only seizing about 30 per cent of the illegal substances on route to Ibiza, with 70 per cent making its way to the insatiable customers, The Sun reports.
Smugglers have been concealing them in submarines, speedboats, by embedding cocaine paste into blankets, or hollowing out bananas.
Since the 1970s, Ibiza has drawn European drug users, initially attracting hippies for hashish and LSD. By the late 1980s, its clubs embraced the party scene, with ecstasy becoming the drug of choice.
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Now cocaine is the biggest problem for the island, where hospitals are overrun by overdosing or drunken tourists.
Legendary DJ and club promoter Danny Gould now admits he was part of the problem until he realised drugs were destroying his life.
In an exclusive interview with Sky, the DJ, also known as Danny Clockwork, said: “I was renowned for the madness I had got going on at the time.
“My friends were ringing me up and going, ‘it’s getting a bit out of hand now.‘ And I was like, ’no, this, this is perfect.‘
“I’d had millions of bad experiences, paranoia, psychosis, fighting with imaginary people, car crashes, nearly died.
“Slicing my arms open on windows and bottles and just all mad, crazy stuff.”
Marvin Herbert, who was an enforcer for one of those expat gangs, confesses to using “barbaric” violence in order to get his way.
“I never went anywhere without guns and knives,” he recalled.
However, it wasn’t the locals who betrayed Herbert — instead, it was one of his own colleagues.
“My own people shot me. They wanted me out of the way,” he said.
“The bullet stopped half way through my eye. They don’t know what stopped it.”
Former Guardia Civil commander Bartolome Del Amore was tasked with trying to halt the tide of drugs on the island.
But it was tough, because the organised criminals keep adapting.
“Blankets have been impregnated with cocaine paste, bananas are hollow, they’re full of cocaine,” he said.
“They have used submarines to introduce cocaine.”
Do you know more? Contact us at cocaineinc@news.com.au
Ibiza Narcos is coming to Sky Documentaries on July 7
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Originally published as Cocaine cartel wars: Dismembered bodies in bags, bosses’ eyes shot by own hit men
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