Two men and a woman, among them a couple, were yesterday sentenced to prison terms of between 1 year and 6 months and 5 years and 6 months, for the crime of drug trafficking in the Alentejo village of AlmodĂ´var.
A fourth defendant, group leader's brother, He was acquitted.
Tiago C., of 33 year old, who is in custody in Prison Beja, considered as the group's mentor, He was sentenced to 5 years and 6 months, the chairman of the Collective of Judges (CJ) mentioned that “he will pay for the evil he did and that he can straighten out his life. If you don't stop the traffic, Your life will be one in and out of prison.”, justifying the effective prison sentence applied.
For minor trafficking crimes, this defendant's companion, Vera S., of 24 year old, It was ordered to 2 years in prison, and Gonçalo R., of 25 year old, a 1 year and 6 months, sentences suspended for the same period.
John C., of 38 year old, Tiago's brother was acquitted of the trafficking crime he was accused of.
The president of the CJ criticized the investigators of the process, the military from the Criminal Investigation Unit (NIC) of Almodovar, due to the fact that “it does not specify the locations and quantities seized, giving the image that there was a large volume of drug trafficking”, concluded.
During the searches carried out on the four suspects, 884 hashish doses and 33,5 Cocaine, in addition to two knives with hashish residue and about 20.000 euro cash. Despite the poor economic conditions, the group leader exhibited strong outward signs of wealth, a high-capacity Mercedes and an electric velocipede were apprehended. Six cell phones were also seized., a tablet and two precision scales.
Teixeira Correia
(journalist)
