Juan Vidal Padín, also known as El Burro, a 50-year-old businessman from Vilagarcía, has been released from custody without any charges related to drug trafficking. He is only being investigated for smuggling vessels and is required to appear in court every two weeks. Vidal, with no previous criminal record, was detained for 48 hours due to his alleged involvement in the transportation of cocaine using the Poseidón narco-submarine. The vessel, 15 meters long, was found empty and adrift on March 11 of last year. The investigation into this drug trafficking operation pointed to Vidal Padín and five other individuals who were arrested on Tuesday. However, the judge has deemed that there is insufficient evidence to incriminate them for drug trafficking.
Even though the investigation is ongoing, with further arrests expected in connection to this cocaine transportation operation, the police operation is considered a failure. The police had been tracking El Burro for almost two decades as one of the main suspects in large-scale drug trafficking, but they have not been able to incriminate him this time, especially since no cocaine has been found. In recent months, a joint investigation by the Judicial Police of the Civil Guard, the Central Narcotics Unit, and the Customs Surveillance Service linked El Burro to the Poseidón operation. It was discovered that the two boats found stranded on beaches in Ribeira two weeks before the semi-submerged submersible was spotted in the port area of Vilagarcía were connected to the operation.
The investigation concluded that the detained businessman was responsible for the operation in which the cocaine was safely unloaded at his properties’ beachfront after facing logistical issues that allegedly led Vidal to order the Poseidón pilot to navigate into the bay and then store the cocaine in his property warehouses, which were also inspected on Tuesday. Despite police analysis reports and data obtained from infrared cameras and other maritime surveillance devices, the judge in Vilagarcía has not yet found sufficient evidence to implicate El Burro. The inspection of the detained individual’s companies involved in boat construction, sale, and maintenance suggests possible involvement in the smuggling of boats and equipment.
One of the four seized boats, with a length of 16 meters and equipped with four 420-horsepower engines, was found ready for navigation. It was more powerful than the boats found in Ribeira before the discovery of Poseidón in Vilaxoán waters. Despite the media attention on the operation against El Burro, the alleged Galician drug trafficker remains under scrutiny, as he has been for the past 20 years. He may potentially face a money laundering investigation in addition to the smuggling charges, according to police sources. Subscribe to stay updated on this ongoing case.
