A shortage of certain drugs in the Ayamonte and Huelva areas of Spain has brought eager buyers to the Algarve to stock up.
A Spanish couple has been arrested by the GNR military in Loulé, firstly on suspicion of drug trafficking. The pair was in possession of a suspiciously large amount of heroin that they had bought in Portugal in the face of domestic shortages.
On Sunday night a GNR patrol observed suspicious movements of a passenger car in Vale d’Eguas near Almancil - a place long associated with the supply and purchase of heroin.
The GNR arrested the Spanish couple and at first thought they were suppliers as they had a large amount of the drug in the car but further investigations now point towards the Spaniards coming to Portugal to buy heroin due to shortages.
The authorities on both sides of the border have been aware of a shifting pattern of demand that draws Spaniards to the Algarve where their habits can be fed, or where dealers can restock to re-sell in Spain.
In Almancil the GNR arrested a man they suspect of having been involved in the transaction.
