A drug trafficker accused of murder and a string of other crimes has been found hiding in the Costa del Sol’s wealthiest community.
Policia Nacional revealed this week that they arrested the fugitive in the upmarket Benahavis, describing his a ‘High Value Target’, according to Europol.
He is wanted in Poland for homicide, drug trafficking and membership of a violent criminal organisation.
Another Polish national, also on the run, was arrested in Denia on the Costa Blanca.
According to Polish authorities, both men are alleged to be ringleaders of a violent gang based in Krakow that trafficked drugs from Spain to Poland.
The arrests mark a major breakthrough in a cross-border investigation that began in May this year, after Polish officials tipped off Spanish police about a dangerous criminal group believed to be operating from within Spain.
The group, they said, was linked to Krakow football hooligan networks that controlled local drug markets in Poland.
Years-long probe tied to major drug shipments
Polish investigators have been tracking the gang since 2016. In 2022, two interlinked networks were dismantled – both of which had established drug routes between Spain, Poland, and other European countries.
These criminal cells used strict hierarchies to coordinate large-scale drug acquisitions, international transport, and distribution.
Evidence gathered included transactions involving over 140kg of cannabis and substantial quantities of cocaine, with black market values totalling millions of zlotys.
Authorities also tied the network to a series of violent crimes, including attacks on border guards and civilians.
The fugitive arrested in Benahavis was allegedly involved in an assault that left a law enforcement officer seriously injured.
Joint Spanish-Polish operation ends two-year manhunt
Spanish police located the main suspect in Benahavis, a town known for its luxury villas and foreign residents.
A joint task force, including officers from Krakow’s police force, was deployed to make the arrest after the suspect had spent more than two years evading Polish justice.
Shortly after, the second fugitive was tracked down and arrested in Denia, a coastal town in Alicante province. He too was the subject of a European Arrest Warrant issued by Polish authorities.
Read more Andalucia news at the Spanish Eye.
