Four more suspects arrested in kidnapping and murder linked to drug cartel in Catalonia

Police National and the Mossos d'Esquadra have taken into custody four men suspected of participating in the abduction and homicide of a 46-year-old Italian man who traveled to Catalonia. The case originated in late June when the victim’s relatives filed a complaint after receiving a photo and a demand for a cryptocurrency payment. Subsequent investigation mapped the victim’s route, identified the crime scene and recovered his body in a forested area of Botarell in August.

The suspects are also alleged members of a larger criminal organization involved in international drug trafficking and linked to the Sinaloa cartel. Their arrests, carried out in Barcelona and nearby municipalities, were based on new evidence gathered after a November operation that dismantled a related network. The detainees, ranging from their mid-twenties to early fifties, have been placed before the second instance court in Reus.