Prostitution
Fifteen young Brazilian transsexuals were threatened with black magic as they were pimped to clients in Murcia.
Spanish police said yesterday that they rescued the victims and arrested 13 people throughout the country accused of running the sex trafficking ring.
The criminal bosses used beatings, drugs and black magic ‘to coerce’ the prostitutes.
In addition authorities seized three apartments in Murcia where they found items relating to black magic and the ritualistic Santeria religion.
The police said: ‘The criminal group was headed by a Brazilian national, who .. from Spain and with the aid of associates .. recruited youths in Brazil who were in a precarious economic condition. They were then tricked into coming to Spain.’
The 13 suspects who were arrested are between the ages of 19 and 60. They include nationals from Brazil, Colombia, Peru, Romania and Spain.
Four of the suspects have been jailed as the investigation continues, while the rest were released on bail.
Franco Protest
An artist was arrested briefly yesterday after painting a dove in red on Gen. Francisco Franco’s tomb, an attack that comes as debate rages in Spain over the exhumation of the dictator.
Enrique Tenreiro can be seen in a video shared online as he kneels before Franco’s tomb in the Valley of the Fallen. He then proceeds to draw the dove and write “for freedom” on the slab decorated with flowers, before security personnel rush to get hold of him.
“For freedom and the reconciliation of all Spaniards,” the artist can be heard shouting as he is held by a guard.
The video was shot by independent Spanish photographer Pedro Armestre, who said the artist’s action took place as the daily Mass was about to start in the basilica.
Civil Guard agents later arrested Tenreiro .. The artist was released in the early afternoon.
Traffic Latest
Traffic police are preparing to launch a new weapon in the war on drivers who use mobile ‘phones at the wheel.
Unmarked vans and HGVs specially equipped with front and side cameras are already being trialed on the roads in Galicia and Castilla y León as the DGT prepares to crack down on motorists using mobiles while they drive.
Officers will use the height of their vehicles, similar to those already in use on Britain’s roads, to peer down into vehicles to catch offenders talking on their mobiles, messaging, reading or writing whilst driving.
Over 4000 people have been caught in the two years that the operation has been running in the UK.
the DGT is determined to tackle and ultimately erradicate the use of mobile ‘phones by drivers as it is now the distraction that causes most fatalities on the roads.
Pumpkins
Spain is the biggest producer of pumpkins in the European Union, according to a study by the bloc’s statistical office Eurostat released in time for Halloween.
Spain produced 115,000 metric tonnes of pumpkins last year .. followed by France, Germany, Portugal and Poland according to EU data.