Ecuador, Spain arrest 11 ‘FARC money launderers’

Nine people were arrested in Ecuador and two in Spain in a joint operation targeting the money laundering networks of Colombian guerrilla group the FARCaccording to Spanish police.

The detainees are accused of laundering over $279 million (200 million euros) from cocaine sales in Europe.

In September, Spanish police arrested 41 people in Spain who were accused of sending drug money to Ecuador.

The Ecuador suspects allegedly received this money, and then passed it on to drug trafficking networks in Colombia with the intention of it reaching the FARC.

The arrests in Ecuador were postponed due to a recent police revolt against President Rafael Correa.

In Colombia, police are investigating the records of some of the recipients of the money. Several bank accounts in Spain and Ecuador have been blocked.

In Spain, the arrested include family members of Jenny Alexandra Fasce, the alleged head of the European network of traffickers.

The investigation began in August 2008, when authorities focused on the prevention of money laundering in Spain noticed a very large increase in money transfers from Spain to Ecuador and Colombia.

They did not follow the typical pattern of remittances, which led authorities to believe they may be a tactic for laundering drug money.

The operation has not officially closed, and more arrests are still possible.

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