A DJ who performed at some of Ibiza’s biggest nightclubs has been named as the alleged “mastermind” behind an international drug smuggling operation.
The suspect is believed to be DJ Hugo Bianco from Argentina according to Mixmag and Diario de Ibiza , who was once a regular face at Marco Carola’s Music On parties in Ibiza and clubs such as Amnesia, Pacha Ibiza and Destino. He also featured on line-ups for Albania’s Unum Festival, London’s 93 Feet East, and BPM Festival in Costa.
According to a court ruling, a joint investigation by Spain’s Guardia Civil and US Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) dubbed Operation Pertinax, Bianco was identified as the “mastermind” behind a drug trafficking network alleged to have moved “significant” amounts of MDMA, cocaine, ketamine, and cannabis across the Balearic Islands between September 2019 and August 2020.
Part of the shipment was later allegedly transported to Miami by recruited couriers, who concealed the drugs in luggage and seemingly legitimate containers.
According to the investigation, Bianco used his extensive connections in Ibiza and Miami, where he regularly performed, to establish a drug transportation and distribution route between Spain and the United States.
Bianco has been accused of utilising his connections in Miami and Ibiza to provide “logistical support” to the operation from his home in Barcelona. Authorities have declared the 54-year-old, who is currently believed to be residing in Florida, a “fugitive from justice” along with two other suspects.
Last week, the High Court of Justice of the Balearic Islands (TSJB) upheld a nine-and-a-half-year prison sentence against Bianco. The ruling confirmed an earlier decision issued by the Provincial Court, maintaining convictions for drug trafficking, membership in a criminal organisation, and electricity fraud.
The TSJB rejected the defence’s arguments that Bianco was not central to the drug trafficking operation and maintained investigators’ use of wiretapped phone conversations as evidence.
Alongside his prison sentence, the court also ruled that Bianco will be fined €3million (£2.59million).
He is yet to comment to publicly on the sentence.