Spanish police, with support from Europol, arrested 78 individuals in Spain and Algeria on Friday, August 7th, 2026, dismantling one of the largest smuggling networks operating in the western Mediterranean. The group trafficked synthetic drugs such as MDMA, firearms, explosives, and migrants along established routes between Spain, Portugal, and Algeria.

Europol described the network as having "evolved from drug trafficking into a duel-flow criminal enterprise designed to maximise profits," moving synthetic drugs from Spain and Portugal to Algeria and using the return journey to smuggle migrants and weapons to the Spanish mainland and Ibiza via "ghost speedboats."

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

Europol reported that migrants were smuggled along routine routes from Algeria to Spain, with fees reaching up to €12,000 (£10,200) per person. In some trips, over 50 migrants could be transported, with estimated profits from migrant smuggling alone exceeding €24 million (£20 million). Transfers were organised in international waters near the Spanish coastline.

This announcement follows a recent influx of roughly 78,000 migrants into the Spanish North African territory of Ceuta, attributed to online rumours about an open border. While most migrants have returned to Morocco, between 3,000 and 5,000 remain in Ceuta, according to the exclave's leader Juan Jesús Vivas.

The network is also linked to other criminal activities including violent robberies, extortion, illegal detentions, and money laundering.

Sources