Preventive request made against Russian mafia leader connected to cannabis scam, incoming information suggests.

The Second Criminal Chamber of the Supreme Court of Justice is set to review a request for preventive detention against a Russian citizen on Monday. The individual is the main suspect in an organization led by Russians that allegedly defrauded 645 million euros through false investments in cannabis plants for medicinal purposes.

The court, headed by Francisco Jerez Mena along with Francisco Ortega Polanco, Fran Soto, and María Garabito, will consider the request for coercive measures against Sergei Berezin and Paul Bergholts, who are being sought for extradition by the Spanish judicial authorities.

Deputy attorney general Andrés Chalas Vásquez from the Department of International Cooperation and Extraditions of the Attorney General’s Office presented the request against Sergei Berezin, who was arrested during a raid at a tourist complex in Bayahibe, La Altagracia province.

The investigation involved the Specialized Prosecutor’s Office Against High-Tech Crimes and Crimes (Pedatec) and the Specialized Prosecutor’s Office Against Money Laundering and Financing of Terrorism, working in collaboration with the National Police and other state investigation agencies to locate the alleged leader of the fraudulent organization.

Sergei Berezin, along with eight other suspects who were captured in Spain and other European countries, is currently held at the headquarters of the National Drug Control Directorate (DNCD) and will be transferred to court on Monday for the decision on the preventive measures.

German, French, American, and British security forces, along with Spanish and Dominican authorities, participated in the operation. The arrests were made in various countries, including Spain, Germany, the United Kingdom, Latvia, Poland, Italy, and the Dominican Republic.

The criminal organization’s business model involved deceiving investors by promising high returns on investments in cannabis cultivation projects. However, the funds raised were not fully invested in medicinal cannabis, and a large portion was used for personal enrichment, misleading investors and causing financial losses.

The platform operated physical investor information offices in European cities to gain customers’ trust, but investigations revealed the fraudulent nature of the organization’s activities.