Spanish authorities pursue funds laundered by a transnational mafia group operating in the southern part of Gran Canaria. After the San Bartolomé de Tirajana Investigation Court No. 3 accepted the complaint from the Las Palmas Anti-Corruption Prosecutor, three Italian nationals tied to the criminal organization were located, questioned, and found to hold bank accounts and properties on the island.
Following the judge’s acceptance last September, Javier Ramirez de Verger-Vargas, a prosecutor, oversaw a complex operation by Udef’s Group I Las Palmas National Police. In coordination with the Special Prosecutor’s Office for Combating Corruption and Organized Crime, led by Javier Rodenas, authorities worked with Interpol in Rome and the Turin Anti-Mafia Prosecutor to build money laundering charges against the three Italians residing in Gran Canaria.
This international collaboration was essential to prove the illicit origin of funds discovered during the ongoing Spanish money laundering investigation, an effort initialized under the codename trattoria operation by the Economic and Financial Crimes Unit (Udef) of the National Police in Las Palmas.
Investigators and prosecutors spent roughly a year untangling a global web of companies designed to obscure origins. A sprawling network linked to the San Bartolomé de Tirajana area enabled the transalpine crime family to funnel money previously obtained through fraud in the country.
The Italian case began with proceedings at the Turin Court involving aggravated fraud related to obtaining public subsidies for energy certificates, according to judicial sources. The falsification of these documents led to the conviction of 45 individuals connected to a criminal organization that manipulated energy certificates to secure public aid.
The resulting “mafia conspiracy” funds were funneled to foreign companies headquartered in Italy and other jurisdictions, with revenues later cycled through various accounts or redirected to other entities. Some funds were moved through multiple entities, sometimes circulating back to the original country or being redirected to actors in other nations.
Investigators identified a money laundering channel valued at 57 million euros, with beneficiaries linked to nationals from Romania, Bulgaria, and Moldova. The funds were often converted to cash or returned to companies in the same country, frequently passing through Bulgaria or being sent to organizations in China, Hong Kong, Dubai, the Grenadines, or Panama, among other locations.
The managers of these entities acted as “puppets,” their actions controlled by actual operators who sought to dodge liability and mask the identities of those who orchestrated the schemes. A presence report from Udef’s Group I Las Palmas underscores these dynamics and prompted prosecutors to press charges against two residents and a business partner. European investigative orders and coordinated inquiries revealed institutional ties and close links between the parties, including individuals previously convicted in Italy for “membership in a criminal organization” tied to defrauding public funds through fraudulent energy certificates.
Suspects Giuseppe G. and his partner Didina H. are central figures in the money laundering case tied to the Educational Court Case No. 3 in San Bartolomé de Tirajana. The judge recently declassified the trial after the Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s complaint was accepted last September. Precautionary measures were put in place to preserve the integrity of the proceedings, including freezing Giuseppe G.’s checking accounts and confiscating a bungalow owned by his partner in Maspalomas in late 2017.
The property, located in the Green Flower Dune complex, was purchased for 100,000 euros with funds allegedly derived from illicit activities in Italy. The single-story house is registered in the name of Giuseppe G.’s partner. Udef alleges that, following a year of preliminary investigations to substantiate the prosecutor’s complaint, the case shows illicit wealth of 451,877 euros between 2017 and 2019, allegedly linked to energy certificate manipulations in Italy to gain public aid.
Forensic sources indicate that the suspects have not yet given statements, as their whereabouts are unknown. Judicial sources note that the Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office has requested searches and arrests, with the trattoria operation remaining open as investigations continue.
Another case under active investigation in Tenerife highlights the broader pattern of Italian-organized crime in the Canary Islands. Historical operations by the Civil Guard and the National Police Service (CNP) have consistently targeted this phenomenon. The most recent major operation, conducted at the end of 2021 in the south of Tenerife, involved the arrest of 106 individuals in collaboration with Italy’s Polizia di Stato and Europol. Investigators contend that the organization laundered more than 10 million euros in 2021 on behalf of mafia clans such as Casamonica, Neapolitan Camorra, Nuvoletta, and Sacra Corona Unita, involving scams across multiple European countries, including Spain. Those arrested faced charges including membership in a criminal organization, fraud, drug trafficking, money laundering, kidnapping, document falsification, various forms of violence, extortion, and illegal weapon possession. The case underscores the ongoing, transnational nature of organized crime in the region .
puppets
The chains of these operations show funds moving through Eastern European entities, then being converted to cash or returned to companies within the same country, with occasional transfers to actors in Bulgaria or to entities in China, Hong Kong, Dubai, the Grenadines, or Panama. Authorities describe the managers of these companies as “puppets,” controlled by the true operators who aim to mask the roots of the scheme and shield the principals from liability .
In the present case, investigative teams highlight that the real managers directed the projects and that several individuals claimed exoneration while remaining tied to the financial network. The documentary trail and investigative orders indicate institutional ties and close links among the parties and indicate that some individuals convicted in Italy were involved in defrauding public funds tied to energy certificates .
As the proceedings continue, Giussepe G. and his partner Didina H. stand out as principal suspects in the Canary Islands money laundering investigation linked to San Bartolomé de Tirajana Judicial District. The court has not yet heard formal statements from the three subjects, whose known locations remain unsettled. The Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office continues to press for further action, including searches and arrests, as authorities pursue the trattoria operation to its next stage.
These developments reflect a broader pattern of Italian criminal networks establishing footholds in the Canary Islands, with ongoing interventions by local and international law enforcement agencies aiming to dismantle the infrastructure behind cross-border fraud and money laundering .