Joint operation of the National Police and the Tax Agency

• A transnational criminal organization has been dismantled and five people have been arrested, including the head of an international network who had been on the run for months after evading a police operation carried out by different countries.

• The network's infrastructure in Spain was led by a major drug trafficker who controlled a logistics network that distributed large quantities of drugs between different European countries.

• Six raids and searches have been carried out in the provinces of Alicante, Murcia, Las Palmas and Madrid, in which, among other things, more than 35,000 euros in cash, two boats and a vehicle were seized.

• In one of the searches carried out, a clandestine laboratory for the design of synthetic drugs was dismantled, which was located in an industrial warehouse in a town in Murcia.

August 30, 2023.- Members of the Customs Surveillance Service of the Tax Agency and agents of the National Police have intercepted a boat loaded with more than six tons of hashish south of the Canary Islands. The case was assisted by the Portuguese Judicial Police, the Swedish Police through its Interior Attaché for Nordic Countries in Spain, and the Dutch Police through its Interior Attaché in Spain, as well as the French customs authorities (DNRD) and the Maritime Analysis and Operations Centre (MAOC) based in Lisbon (Portugal).

As a result of the operation, a transnational criminal organization has been dismantled and five people have been arrested, including the head of an international network who had been on the run for months after evading a police operation carried out by different countries.

The network's infrastructure in Spain was led by a major drug trafficker known for his international links to transport large quantities of drugs between different European countries.

Six raids and searches were carried out in the provinces of Alicante, Murcia, Las Palmas and Madrid, resulting in the seizure of, among other items, more than 35,000 euros in cash, two boats and a vehicle. In one of the searches carried out, a clandestine laboratory for the design of synthetic drugs located in an industrial warehouse in a town in Murcia was dismantled.

The investigation was launched in 2020 by the Central Narcotics Brigade when the presence of a sailboat docked on the island of Lanzarote was detected, which could be used for a maritime drug trafficking operation. After several investigations, the agents established possible international connections, so the information was shared with international organizations, as well as with other European police units. As a result of this cooperation, the Dutch authorities indicated that there could be a criminal organisation of Dutch origin related to the vessel found in our country.

Alicante as a center of operations

As a result of the investigation, the police discovered that an international criminal organisation based in the Netherlands was using a town in Alicante as its centre of operations. The criminal network's logistics and infrastructure in Spain was led by a major drug trafficker known for his international links, controlling a logistics network capable of transporting large quantities of drugs between different European countries.

The members of the organization operated under tight security measures and used a very sophisticated modus operandi, with a high degree of preparation and planning. They travelled in person between different countries to discuss the details of the illicit businesses they were carrying out, which made police work difficult.

6,044 kilos of hashish distributed in 169 bales

After several months of monitoring the movements of the network, investigators detected that a boat had been taken to Alicante and that members of the organisation were preparing it to embark on a journey to the Atlantic Ocean.

Suspecting that it might contain narcotic substances, it was decided to intercept it, boarding the patrol boat 'Cóndor' of the Customs Surveillance Service (DAVA), 95 miles south of the Canary Islands, locating 6,044 kilos of hashish distributed in 169 bales and arresting its two crew members.

Continuing with the investigation, the investigators carried out six raids and searches in the provinces of Alicante, Murcia, Madrid and Gran Canaria, in which, among other things, more than 35,000 euros in cash, a multitude of mobile and satellite phones, various documents on boats used by the organisation and a vehicle were seized.

Clandestine drug design laboratory dismantled

During a search of a warehouse in a town in Murcia, officers located and dismantled a clandestine laboratory for the design of synthetic drugs, where they found a large quantity of substances used to make pills and industrial machinery for making and counting the tablets. In addition, a twelve-metre-long inflatable boat was also seized.

On the other hand, in one of the searches carried out at the home of one of the detainees in Alicante, the police seized small quantities of tusi (pink cocaine), hashish, marijuana and crystal, as well as items for retail distribution.

International criminal who has been on the run for months has been arrested

Five people were arrested during the operation, including the leader of an international criminal organisation dedicated to drug trafficking and money laundering, who was on the run from the German authorities and is facing a 15-year prison sentence.