Spain has arrested the police chief responsible for the nation’s economic crimes unit after €20 million was discovered hidden in the walls of his home. The arrest of Óscar Sánchez Gil, along with 15 other individuals—including his partner, who is also a police officer—comes as part of an ongoing investigation into Spain’s largest-ever cocaine seizure.

Sánchez Gil, who until recently headed the national police’s fraud and anti-money laundering division, was detained last week. Authorities reportedly found €20 million concealed in the walls and ceilings of his home in Alcala de Henares, a town east of Madrid. An additional €1 million was also discovered locked away in his office. The arrested individuals face charges related to drug trafficking, money laundering, bribery, corruption, and participation in a criminal organization.

The arrests are connected to the discovery last month of 13 tonnes of cocaine hidden in a cargo container of bananas shipped from Ecuador to Spain’s southern port of Algeciras. This bust, the second largest ever recorded in Europe, is part of a broader investigation into the operation of international drug trafficking networks. Spanish police said the shipment had been flagged for inspection because the Ecuadorian exporter had a history of illicit activities.

Following the cocaine bust, authorities conducted searches of multiple homes and offices in Madrid and Alicante, uncovering connections between the cocaine traffickers and Sánchez Gil. Media reports suggest that Sánchez Gil, previously a member of the national police’s narcotics division, initially made contact with criminal organizations while purportedly working to combat drug trafficking. Over time, however, he is believed to have helped these drug gangs evade police detection, particularly in smuggling cocaine from Ecuador.

Police sources confirmed that the €20 million seized from Sánchez Gil’s home was not linked to the recent cocaine bust, but instead represented profits from his years of collaboration with criminal networks. Spanish authorities suggest the money was accumulated through his illicit activities, which reportedly began during his tenure in narcotics enforcement.

The discovery of the massive cocaine shipment, which was intended for distribution across Europe, comes amid increasing concerns over the growing influx of hard drugs entering European ports from Latin America. Narcotics police chief António Jesús Martínez noted that the drugs were destined for wider distribution throughout Europe, which has seen a significant rise in smuggling operations in recent years.

The Guardian, one of the UK’s leading newspaper groups, has announced it will cease posting on X, formerly known as Twitter, due to what it described as the platform’s increasingly “toxic” nature. In a statement to its readers, the publication expressed growing concerns over the direction of the platform under the ownership of Elon Musk, particularly in light of the recent US presidential election.

The Guardian’s decision reflects its apprehension that Musk has used X to influence political discourse, with the media group pointing to his outspoken support for former President Donald Trump. Musk, who is known for his political involvement, has recently been given a role in Trump’s incoming administration to help cut government spending. The Guardian stated that it had been “considering for a while” the negative effects of being on the platform, citing issues such as the promotion of far-right conspiracy theories and racism.

While the newspaper confirmed it would no longer post directly on X, it clarified that readers could still share its articles on the platform. Additionally, The Guardian is likely to continue embedding X posts in its coverage of major world events. Despite this, the publication concluded that the “benefits of being on X are now outweighed by the negatives.”

The announcement was also shared on X itself, where reactions from users were mixed. Some responses, particularly from those who paid for prominent replies, criticized The Guardian’s decision, accusing the newspaper of promoting “woke propaganda” and “virtue signaling.”

The departure marks a sharp critique of the platform’s increasing political alignment with Trump, a figure The Guardian has long opposed. The timing of the decision, following Trump’s election victory, appears strategic, with the publication positioning itself as a key part of the opposition to Trump’s influence. The Guardian, which prides itself on being “the world’s leading liberal voice,” has used the election results to emphasize its independence from billionaire media moguls like Musk.

In a surprising turn, The Guardian’s readers responded enthusiastically to a fundraising appeal, pledging more than $1.8 million (£1.4 million) in a single day, setting a record for the newspaper. Ben Mullin, media reporter for The New York Times, noted that this surge in donations reflects growing public support for adversarial journalism in the post-election climate.

The move away from X by The Guardian could signal a wider shift in media behavior. X’s competitors, particularly Meta’s Threads and Jack Dorsey’s Bluesky, are seeing increasing user engagement. In the past two months, Bluesky gained four million new users and briefly topped the download charts in both the UK and US Apple App Stores, although it remains a smaller player with just 15 million users globally.

As X faces mounting criticism, industry experts are questioning whether more major outlets will follow The Guardian’s lead.