The Audiencia de Valladolid is holding this Wednesday, July 8, the third oral hearing related to "Operation Almendro" against drug trafficking, an operation that concluded in May 2024 with a total of ten arrests. Eight of them already sat on the bench on September 17, 2025, a procedure that ended with seven convictions and one acquittal, while a ninth defendant was tried separately on February 20 of this year and was also exonerated by the court.
In this new session, the only defendant will be Martín I.G., who until now had not been able to be brought before justice due to an outstanding arrest warrant. The Prosecutor's Office is seeking eight and a half years in prison and a fine of 70,000 euros for him, although everything indicates that the defendant has already reached an agreement with the public ministry to accept a lesser sentence, according to legal sources told Europa Press.
The first trial for these events ended last year with the conviction of Tamara G.T. to "a total of seven years and nine months of deprivation of liberty and a fine of 18,673 euros" for a drug trafficking offense of notorious importance and for possession of prohibited weapons. Next, in order of severity, was the sentence imposed on the also confessed defendant Enrique S.S., "which was the one agreed with the prosecutor of six years and one day and a fine of 16,500 euros," along with "six years and a fine of 3,655 euros to José Ignacio S.C. for drug trafficking and criminal group," and "four years and six months to Javier M.D, Jesús C.M, Alberto G.A. and Kevin dos S.P, in all cases with fines also for the amount of 3,655 euros."
In that same ruling, the Fourth Criminal Chamber of the Provincial Court decided to acquit Verónica C.G., who initially faced a request for four years and three months in prison and a fine of 2,000 euros. A similar situation was repeated in February with the ninth defendant, Valentín C.P., tried in a separate piece and who was also acquitted.
With the appearance now of Martín I.G., the tenth person involved in the operation, the Valladolid court expects to conclude the proceedings with respect to all defendants. In this last case, it is not expected that a full trial will be necessary, as the parties would have reached a prior agreement that they will limit themselves to formalizing this Wednesday.
According to the proven facts, Tamara G.T. had coordinated with other investigated individuals through phone calls and personal meetings to obtain narcotic substances that she subsequently transported to the town of Laguna de Duero (Valladolid), where she had a storage room. Furthermore, an important part of the drug that Tamara acquired in Madrid was later sold to Enrique S.S., a resident of Morales de Toro (Zamora), who in turn distributed it among other buyers.
On May 23, 2024, the arrest of most of the accused took place in Madrid, and the operation continued on the 24th with the arrest of three more people: two women in Valladolid, Tamara and Verónica, and the resident of Morales de Toro, Enrique S. On the same day, the storage rooms located in Madrid and Laguna de Duero were searched, as well as homes in Madrid and Zamora, where 492 grams of hashish, 681.5 grams of marijuana, 516 grams of cocaine, 1,626.9 grams of speed, 22.2 grams of crystal, 17.3 grams of MDMA, 8.2 grams of ecstasy, and 58.1 grams of ketamine were found.
During the searches, 11,500 grams of a substance intended for the manufacture of methamphetamine, two canisters with 40 liters of Methylamine, a precursor to that drug, an electric pistol, a compressed air pistol with pellets, and two knives were also seized. In addition, five vehicles and 4,830 euros in cash were confiscated, along with notebooks with handwritten notes and various materials for the preparation of narcotic substances.
After analyzing all the seized items, the National Police concluded that the criminal group was in a position to set up a methamphetamine laboratory.