Dramatic scenes returned to Benidorm on Thursday night as a popular bar was surrounded by police on the resort’s party strip.

British revellers uploaded videos asking ‘what is going on?’ as multiple cop cars pulled up outside Morgan Tavern before roping off the area.

Police revealed on Friday that the raid was one of two venues searched on Thursday.

They said they uncovered a string of alleged offences involving drugs, weapons and serious safety failings, with ‘one nightlife venue facing a major sanction for operating without public liability insurance’.

The raids were not connected to the businessmen arrested in the previous large-scale police operation.

Officers issued one drugs report and three weapons reports at one of the venues, while a second premises was cited over the possession of narcotics and an unauthorised defensive spray.

It was not made clear which charges related to Morgan Tavern. The Spanish Eye has contacted the bar for comment.

Police said the inspections form part of a wider crackdown on organised criminal groups operating in Benidorm’s nightlife scene, following months of investigations that have already led to the seizure of significant quantities of drugs and materials linked to trafficking operations.

It comes amid growing calls among both British tourists and locals for the area to be cleaned up.

A number of holidaymakers feel crime and drug dealing in the resort have grown out of control in recent years.

Last summer, Spanish Eye reporters were openly offered ‘Charlie’ (cocaine) by employees of multiple bars and nightclubs, suggesting drug networks operate with near impunity.

This week it emerged police arrested 80 people for their alleged involvement in an organised drug-dealing network operating inside nightlife venues in Benidorm.

The massive operation targeted small-scale drug trafficking in one of the city’s busiest entertainment zones and uncovered a gang allegedly linked to violence, intimidation, weapons and coordinated surveillance of police patrols.

According to the Policia Nacional, suspects used walkie-talkies to warn each other whenever officers approached the area, allowing venues to temporarily halt alleged drug sales and hide illegal activity before inspections.

Investigators say members of the network had even assigned nicknames to different types of police officers depending on whether they were in uniform, undercover or belonged to the Policia Nacional or Local Police.

The operation resulted in the arrests of suspects aged between 18 and 82.

Among those detained were two businessman brothers who allegedly owned or managed several nightlife venues, as well as another pair of brothers accused of controlling security and public relations operations across the establishments.

Police say the organisation operated in a highly coordinated way, with lookouts stationed outside venues monitoring police movements and communicating through radio systems.

Investigators also allege that some security staff and public relations workers directed customers towards specific drug sellers inside the venues, including bartenders allegedly involved in supplying narcotics.

Authorities also linked the venues to numerous violent incidents, including fights and mass brawls involving machetes, knives and blunt weapons.

One of the most serious incidents occurred when several Local Police officers were allegedly threatened and harassed by people connected to the venues during an inspection.

Police say the intimidation campaign was retaliation for previous arrests, raids and drug seizures carried out in the area.

The large-scale crackdown involved officers from multiple police divisions, including judicial police, immigration units, regional police attached to the Valencian government and Benidorm’s specialist response units.

During two nights of coordinated raids, officers inspected seven nightlife venues.

The first phase of the operation led to 53 arrests and the seizure of:

• more than €32,000 in cash
• 40 walkie-talkies
• 16 mobile phones
• pepper sprays
• a brass knuckle weapon
• hidden drug storage boxes
• cocaine prepared in individual doses
• ecstasy
• marijuana
• cutting agents

A further 24 people were arrested during the second night of raids, while the two businessman brothers considered among the main suspects were detained days later.

Authorities say the investigation remains ongoing and one of the principal suspects has still not been located.

All 80 detainees were released after giving statements, with the case now passed to an investigating court in Benidorm.