Spanish authorities have dismantled an organised crime group behind a pipeline of military-grade weapons entering southern Spain from eastern Europe.
A series of raids across Almeria, Granada and Huelva last week brought down the family-led clan, which helped arm gangsters in regions like the Costa del Sol with a variety of deadly weapons of war, including rocket launchers, assault rifles and automatic pistols.
At 6am last Wednesday, more than 300 Policia Nacional officers, supported by drones, helicopters and special intervention teams, raided 24 properties linked to the sprawling criminal network.
The group, based mainly in Almeria city, has long been suspected of using drug profits to finance arms trafficking.
Officers seized 4,500 marijuana plants, 600 kilos of processed cannabis, €130,000 in cash, and 20 firearms, most of them adapted for combat.
Some 22 people (19 Spaniards and three Moroccans) were arrested and remain in custody, with prosecutors requesting pre-trial detention for all.
From cannabis to Kalashnikovs
The raids, dubbed Operacion Kremlin-Zaka, were a continuation of an earlier case known as Operacion Pentagon-Orenev, which exposed a hidden arms route linking the Baltics and Ukraine to southern Spain.
That first phase, carried out in the Almeria town of Pechina last year, resulted in 25 arrests and the seizure of 23 weapons, including a rocket launcher.
After examining seized phones and documents, investigators discovered that gang members who escaped the first sweep had continued their operations, cultivating cannabis in several provinces, shipping it to the Netherlands, and receiving cash or weapons in return.
Police sources said criminal gangs have realised that guns are now as valuable as guns, as every shipment must be guarded by automatic weapons.
It follows a surge in so-called ‘vuelcos’, which sees rival clans robbing each other’s drug shipments and selling them on.
A lucrative trade in conflict weapons
Investigators say most of the arms come from former Soviet-bloc countries, consisting of surplus stock smuggled west from regions bordering Ukraine and Russia.
Once in Spain, a single rifle that costs €6,000 abroad can sell for €40,000 on the black market.
Police believe the Almeria clan had begun reselling weapons to organised crime groups along the Costa del Sol, where escalating gang violence has been marked by a surge in shootings and executions.
The biggest crackdown yet
Wednesday’s operation involved the General Information Directorate, the provincial police HQs of Almeria, Granada and Huelva, and elite tactical units including GOIT and UIP, supported by drones and helicopters.
In addition to drugs and weapons, officers recovered luxury cars, high-end electronics, 400 national lottery tickets used to launder money, and a €12,000 designer watch. The total value of seized drugs alone is estimated at €4 million.
Investigators believe the arrests have crippled one of Andalucía’s key arms suppliers, but warn that the flow of war-grade weapons into Spain is far from over.
