Andalucia’s president Juanma Moreno has written directly to Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez demanding the return of an elite Guardia Civil unit dedicated to fighting the region’s increasingly powerful drug gangs.
In the letter, dated August 20, Moreno warns that Andalucia has become one of the ‘main bases of operations’ for drug mafias, while accusing the State of failing to provide security forces with sufficient resources to confront them.
He argues that the dismantling of OCON-Sur, the specialist anti-narcotics unit scrapped almost four years ago, was a ‘mistake’ that is now having ‘serious consequences’ for both officers and the public.
Read the letter in full below.
Sevilla, 20 August 2026
Dear President,
I am sending you this letter to convey my concern following the latest incidents we have suffered in Andalucia related to drug trafficking and the drug mafias. This is an extremely serious matter that is generating insecurity among citizens in light of the evidence that these incidents are occurring with increasing frequency and impunity.
As you know, last Saturday a man was murdered in Utrera, in the province of Sevilla, as a result of a shooting. Just one day later, three people – a woman who was eight months pregnant, another woman aged 62 and a minor – were also murdered in Isla Cristina, in the province of Huelva. Initial investigations indicate that the four deaths are linked to a settling of scores between drug-trafficking clans.
I also want to remind you of David, Miguel Angel, German and Jeronimo, the four Guardia Civil officers murdered in the line of duty in Barbate and Huelva over the past two years while trying to combat this scourge. We are facing an escalation in insecurity that requires a forceful response from the State.
The drug mafias have made Andalucia one of their main bases of operations. We are no longer talking about one particular area; the entire coastline and part of the interior of my region are now targets for drug traffickers. We have become accustomed to the sight of narco-boats operating and taking refuge, for example, in the Guadalquivir river in broad daylight.
In addition to the problems of insecurity and public health, drug trafficking also presents us with a social problem that we must address. Drug traffickers take advantage of the most disadvantaged sections of society to recruit them into their drug support, supply and distribution networks.
It is therefore necessary and urgent to take measures to strengthen our State Security Forces and Corps so that they have sufficient resources to combat these criminal organisations, so that our citizens feel safe in the face of this surge in violence, and to keep the youngest and most vulnerable people away from this terrible scourge.
For all these reasons, as President of the Junta de Andalucia, I am asking you to reactivate OCON-Sur (Organismo de Coordinación del Narcotráfico en el Sur – Organisation for the Coordination of Drug Trafficking in the South), the elite Guardia Civil unit that was dismantled almost four years ago and which, until then, had proved effective in containing these mafias.
Most experts agree that the disappearance of this unit marked a turning point in the increase in criminal activity. Furthermore, there has been a growing underlying complaint about the lack of resources available to officers to fight this challenge on equal terms.
Time and events have shown that the dismantling of OCON-Sur was a mistake that is unfortunately having serious consequences for our officers and our citizens.
It is never too late to acknowledge mistakes with humility and correct them. Now is the time to rectify the situation and reorganise this group, thereby providing Andalucia with the necessary tools to combat drug trafficking and ensuring that the State, as the competent authority, guarantees security.
Kind regards,
Juanma Moreno
