Andorra Court Grants Provisional Release to Spanish Tobacco Exec After Smuggling Trial

The Tribunal de Corts in Andorra has granted provisional release to a 66-year-old Spanish former commercial director of a tobacco wholesaler following a two-day trial on charges of major smuggling, money laundering, and illicit association. The case, now concluded and awaiting a final sentence, centers on allegations of supplying €950,000 worth of tobacco for black market sales, primarily in 2024.

Prosecutors argued the defendant played a key role in an organized operation tied to a 20-square-meter Pas de la Casa shop owned by a 43-year-old Portuguese merchant, already convicted after a plea deal. They highlighted 41 orders over ten months, often placed after 7:30 p.m. when other staff had left, with weekly cash payments up to €10,000—allegedly from smuggling proceeds funneled toward France via a Canillo wastewater plant. Investigators estimated 95% of the tobacco bypassed legal channels. Given the defendant's 30 years of experience, prosecutors deemed it implausible that he believed a small shop could handle such volumes legitimately. They maintained their request for six years in prison and a €1.4 million fine.

The defendant, held at La Comella since February 2024 and having lost about 20 kilograms during 14 months in custody, denied any knowledge of illicit activity. As the company's sole administrator, he managed client terms flexibly, including fractionated payments and cash up to the €10,000 internal limit, for a longstanding account facing banking issues. He insisted he gained no personal benefit beyond his fixed salary and 2% annual bonus tied to turnover, rejecting a plea deal to affirm his innocence.

Defense witnesses supported this account. The shopkeeper and a 39-year-old Catalan transporter—both serving sentences after pleas—testified the defendant was unaware of their smuggling and would have halted sales if informed. They admitted using black market cash disguised as shop revenue. Two other convicted smugglers who supplied the transporter denied any link to the defendant or his firm: one said he had never met him, the other confirmed his tobacco came from different sources. Colleagues testified to the defendant's professionalism, noting unawareness of the irregular deliveries and post-arrest policy changes like banning cash payments.

A fiscal expert reviewed 2025 company records showing hundreds of thousands in payments, which prosecutors labeled laundering via fractionated sums; the defense contested this. Tensions peaked when prosecutors questioned the transporter's testimony, noting it conflicted with his earlier admissions—made under pressure for a reduced sentence during a separate probe into prostitution facilitation in an Andorra la Vella flat he rented, which uncovered the tobacco scheme and led to five arrests.

In closing arguments, prosecutors described a coordinated scheme with the defendant at its core, while the defense emphasized the deals represented just 1.8% of company turnover, with no evidence of criminal structure or suspicious personal finances—portraying any issues as administrative oversights at worst. They sought full acquittal.

The court approved the defense's release request after deliberations. Five others faced charges in the wider investigation.