Related videos:
The Civil Guard of Pontevedra seized over 2,000 blister packs of medication in a chalet in Vilaboa (Galicia) that is listed as the headquarters of an association for solidarity with Cuba, as part of an anti-drug operation that culminated in the arrest of nine individuals and the simultaneous discovery of five kilograms of cocaine, weapons, and cash.
The Galician media G24 reported that the investigation, named Bordafi/Dado, started in February 2025 and concluded on May 27, 2026, with seven raids in the municipalities of Sanxenxo, Poio, and Vilaboa.
Three of the nine detainees have been imprisoned: the two alleged leaders of the scheme and the son of the president of the Cuban association, the latter due to a prior offense.
The most striking discovery was four large cardboard boxes containing over 150 different medications. "There were many antidepressants and psychotropic drugs of all kinds. We found Rivotril, Lexatin, Lyrica... approximately two thousand blister packs, comprising more than 150 different medications," stated the lieutenant commander of the Organized Crime and Anti-Drug Team (EDOA) of the Civil Guard in Pontevedra.
El oficial describió el volumen incautado como «una barbaridad de medicamento» y subrayó que la principal novedad de la operación no fue la droga, sino precisamente ese arsenal farmacéutico.
The medications were stored in the chalet listed as the headquarters of the Asociación Cubana Galega Haydée Santamaría, an entity founded in 2014 and registered in the Concello de Vilaboa, although it has not been active since 2020. The president of the association is one of the individuals who was imprisoned as the alleged leader of the scheme.
Close associates of the president and the association claim that the medications were donations for Cuba. "They are donations for Cuba, possibly at the worst moment in the country's history," stated sources linked to the organization.
The Civil Guard dismisses that version. "We believe they were selling them to drug addicts, both online and to individuals who went to the home in question to obtain those medications. They could also have been exported abroad," stated the head of the anti-drug trafficking team of the Civil Guard in Pontevedra.
The suspicion is based on the nature of the intercepted drugs: benzodiazepines such as Rivotril and Lexatin, and gabapentinoids like Lyrica, all of which have a high potential for abuse among individuals with dependencies.
The investigators also confirmed that the nine detainees formed two "quite organized and active" cells that operated in a coordinated manner. "We have concluded that they are related. That is why they are part of a single criminal group," specified the head of the EDOA.
The humanitarian excuse seems plausible in the current context of Cuba. The Cuban Ministry of Health admitted in July 2025 that the island's healthcare system barely covered 30-32% of the basic medication list in pharmacies, and in December 2024, the Cuban Parliament itself acknowledged that 70% of the 651 essential products had low availability or were not available at all.
In addition to the pharmaceutical arsenal, the operation led to the seizure of 5.1 kilograms of cocaine, 117 grams of hashish, over 30,000 euros in cash, 549 packs of smuggled tobacco, and several shotguns. The investigation lasted more than a year and involved two state security forces, reflecting the complexity of a network that operated in small municipalities where, according to the lieutenant chief of the EDOA, "criminals detect security forces sooner."
Filed under: