Following an extensive transnational operation coordinated by Spain’s National Police, authorities have dismantled an underground weapons manufacturing ring and arrested a 61-year-old former Soviet military operative known as Andrey Victorovich A., who supplied modified “Frankenstein” firearms to organized crime syndicates from bases in Alicante and Girona.
The Anatomy of the Levante Arsenal
Investigators spent months tracking a ghost operating under multiple aliases, including Frederic and Victor Gutiev, who utilized parcels shipped from the Spanish Levant to distribute illegal firearms. According to EL PAÍS, the operation successfully removed 664 weapons from the black market, with 200 of those specifically altered to discharge live ammunition. Operating primarily as a skilled lathe operator, Victorovich took advantage of his military background to rebuild obsolete components and modify blank-firing and non-lethal trauma weapons into lethal hardware. These clandestine firearms typically commanded prices between 6,000 and 8,000 euros on the illegal market.
The network relied on a disciplined hierarchy of facilitators across Spain. Police detained six other individuals connected to the enterprise, including three local contacts in Badajoz and a fourth intermediary in Valencia. Investigators uncovered threatening messages sent from a phone tied to the suspects, featuring images of ammunition cartridges accompanied by the chilling ultimatum: “Choose the one you want me to put in your head.” The primary suspect, a native of Tajikistan who later acquired Ukrainian and Spanish nationality, maintained a low profile in Benidorm before relocating his operations to L’Escala in Girona following early police interventions in June.
From Darknet Orders to Ballistic Lab Recoveries
Organized crime networks frequently turn to illicit channels to source single-use ghost weapons for targeted extortion, threats, and retaliatory hits. Because the seized components feature obliterated or missing serial numbers originating from at least six distinct countries—including Germany, Italy, and Brazil—Spain’s police ballistic laboratories face a meticulous task matching the confiscated hardware to unsolved crimes.
| Operation Milestone | Location | Key Seizures & Actions |
|---|---|---|
| June 11, 2006 (Phase 1) | Badajoz | Interception of a postal package containing a pistol, submachine gun, and silencer; three initial arrests and eight seized firearms. |
| June 29, 2006 | Valencia | Fourth intermediary arrested in possession of a rifle, a Luger pistol, and mixed ammunition. |
| August 2006 | L’Escala & Figueres (Girona) | Relocation of the main workshop; subsequent raid yields an arsenal of over 600 firearms, conversion parts, and live rounds. |
The coordinated sweep involved judicial authorities across Badajoz and Figueres, with operational leadership directed by the GRECO organized crime response group in the Levante region. While Victorovich was remanded to preventive prison in mid-August following the seizure of a submachine gun destined for Alzira, authorities continue to analyze recovered documents and trace additional shipments connected to the dismantled network.
