A major cocaine trafficking network that rented luxury villas in Malaga and Sevilla to load drugs into specially modified vehicles has been dismantled by the Policia Nacional.
In total, 26 people have been arrested, with 12 remanded in custody, accused of belonging to a criminal organisation, drug trafficking and money laundering.
Officers seized more than 460kg of cocaine, over €840,000 in cash, and 16 vehicles – seven of which were fitted with highly sophisticated hidden compartments, known in Spain as caletas, capable of concealing up to 160kg of drugs.
Videos of the raids shared by police show a woman and a man being carried away in handcuffs.
The clips also show the piles and piles of cocaine bricks pulled from hidden compartments inside the ‘caletas’, all of them branded as ‘Chanel’ – in a nod to the famous fashion house.
Villas in the south used as loading hubs
According to police, the group rented villas in Malaga and Sevilla, where suppliers would load cocaine into vehicles equipped with hidden compartments.
The drugs were then transported to Madrid, where another branch of the network handled distribution. Exchanges were carried out in hotel garages and private residential parking areas, before the cocaine was redistributed across Spain.
Police say the organisation was moving thousands of kilos per year, earning an estimated €30,000 per kilo delivered.
It means if each ‘caleta’ could deliver 160kg per shipment, that was a potential earning of €4.8million.
It also means that 460kg seized by police would have been worth more than €13million.
Some of the largest hidden compartments ever found
The investigation began in April, when officers detected signs of a criminal group trafficking cocaine from southern Spain.
Working alongside local police, officers stopped two vehicles during roadside checks and discovered 33kg and 160kg of cocaine hidden inside large, electronically activated compartments.
That seizure led to six property searches in Sevilla, Malaga, Toledo and Madrid, resulting in five arrests, the seizure of a further 90kg of cocaine, and four additional vehicles fitted with concealment systems.
€725,000 cash swap in supermarket bags
In early November, investigators observed the group’s distribution method in more detail. One vehicle carrying drugs would be accompanied by a second car acting as a ‘lookout’ vehicle, conducting counter-surveillance to detect police presence.
Despite these precautions, officers intercepted a public cash exchange in Barcelona, where €725,000 was being transferred in supermarket bags. Three individuals were arrested.
Subsequent searches in Madrid – including a private home and a hotel – and in Guadalajara uncovered suitcases containing 177kg of cocaine, leading to three more arrests.
Final phase: distribution network dismantled
By late November, police focused on dismantling the distribution arm of the organisation.
Eight further searches – seven in Madrid and one in Toledo – resulted in the seizure of:
- 4.5kg of cocaine
- More than €63,000 in cash
- Eight vehicles, two with large-capacity hidden compartments
Some 14 additional suspects were arrested during this phase.
Organised crime structure brought down
Police said the operation has successfully dismantled the leadership structure of the organisation within Spain.
All 26 suspects were brought before judicial authorities on charges of:
- Membership of a criminal organisation
- Drug trafficking
- Money laundering
Twelve remain in pre-trial detention.
The scale of the seizures, particularly the size and sophistication of the hidden compartments, marks one of the most significant cocaine trafficking investigations in recent months.
Read more Andalucia news at the Spanish Eye.
