The Spanish authorities have arrested seven individuals last Saturday, December 2, for smuggling drugs from Spain to Algeria and then bringing back Algerian immigrants to Spanish coasts through taxi boats.
During the operation called Emisario, the Spanish Civil Guard also confiscated a total 68 kilograms of methamphetamines worth €3 million.
The dismantled criminal organisation sent boats loaded with ecstasy and amphetamines from Spain to Algeria. Once there, they took advantage of the return trip to transport Algerian citizens to the Spanish coasts. In this way the organisation had double financing: drugs and immigration.
In Alicante, investigators conducted five searches – four in homes and one in a warehouse. As a result, the Civil Guard detained six Algerians and confiscated 20 kilograms of methamphetamine pills, two semi-rigid boats, two vehicles, €8,780 in cash, a detonating pistol, and several mobile phones.
As the Spanish authorities revealed, they were arrested for suspected crimes related to the infringement of the rights of foreign citizens, simulation of a crime, involvement in a criminal organisation, offences against public health, property-related offences, and reception.
The seventh person was arrested in the Almeria town of Roquetas de Mar. Authorities reported that his vessel, transporting 48 kilograms of drugs, broke in the middle of the sea.
In this operation, the Civil Guard has seized a total of 68 kilograms of methamphetamines with an estimated market value of €3 million.
The operation called Emisario started in the early months of 2023 when investigators tracked an Algerian citizen suspected of leading a criminal network. As the Spanish authorities have stated, his network facilitated the logistics and personnel for the irregular entry of compatriots through the coasts of the provinces of Alicante, Murcia, and Almeria.
The operation was conducted by the Information Group of the Alicante Civil Guard, in coordination with the Information Headquarters (UCE 3). Meanwhile, the Reserve and Security Group No. 3, the Citizen Security Unit of Torrevieja, the Cynological Service, and the Service Center of the Alicante Command actively participated in the arrests and searches.
Last month, Spanish authorities arrested 84 people alleged of forging registration certificates in exchange for monetary compensation. Among those was also a woman who served as an administrative assistant in the Municipal Registry of the Gandía City Council until 2007.
The Spanish Ministry of Interior revealed that in 2022, a total of 31,219 individuals reached Spain illegally through perilous routes. Compared to the previous year, this figure marked a decrease of 26 per cent.
