One of the largest criminal networks smuggling drugs and people in the western Mediterranean was dismantled on Friday, August 7th, 2026, following coordinated operations in Spain and Algeria.

Europol reported that 78 individuals were arrested in the bust, which also uncovered links to violent robberies, extortion, illegal detentions, and money laundering. The group trafficked synthetic drugs, including MDMA, firearms, and explosives from Spain and Portugal to Algeria. On the return journey, they smuggled migrants and weapons to the Spanish mainland and Ibiza using "ghost speedboats".

Authorities seized 18 high-speed vessels valued at €5 million (£4.2 million), guns, over €25,000 (£21,400) in cash, and 15,000 MDMA pills. The Spanish police-led operation involved searches at 17 locations across Spain, including Alicante, Almería, Cartagena, and Murcia.

Europol described the network as having "evolved from drug trafficking into a duel-flow criminal enterprise designed to maximise profits," with outbound routes from Spain and Portugal to Algeria. Migrants were smuggled along routine routes from Algeria to Spain, with charges reaching up to €12,000 (£10,200) per person. In some trips, over 50 migrants were smuggled, with estimated profits from migrant smuggling alone exceeding €24 million (£20 million).

The group organised transfers in international waters near the Spanish coastline, according to Europol.

This announcement follows a recent surge in migration into the Spanish North African territory of Ceuta, where approximately 78,000 migrants entered amid online rumours of an open border. Most have returned to Morocco, but between 3,000 and 5,000 remain, according to the exclave's leader Juan Jesús Vivas.

Sources