To operate shipping and parcel delivery networks, a group in Alicante was involved in trafficking drugs across borders into Europe, where narcotics often fetch higher prices. National Police units arrested three nationals, Turkish and German by origin, who specialized in distributing psychotropic substances. They were attempting to depart Spain via Barcelona airport, as reported on a Saturday by the Alicante Provincial Police Station. A total of 46 kilograms of marijuana were seized, divided into six packages.
Interviews and investigations indicated that the detainees were responsible for supplying large quantities of the drug for sale in Germany, Poland, and Lithuania. In those countries, the value of marijuana typically exceeds Spain by severalfold, creating strong incentives for cross-border trafficking and distribution networks.
Thanks to the strong collaboration between the police and transport companies, which the force actively maintains, investigators learned that a Turkish-German group aimed to ship a substantial number of marijuana parcels in the previous November. Packages were vacuum-sealed and camouflaged inside larger items in an attempt to evade controls. Yet parcel delivery firms have developed tools and techniques designed to detect these schemes, making it harder for criminals to hide drugs within ordinary shipments.
The Narcotics Group of the Provincial Judicial Police Brigade of the Alicante National Police led the inquiry. Initial proceedings were opened swiftly, with facts established and data gathered from multiple sources. Investigators obtained clearer footage of three men and a high-end vehicle they had used to facilitate the crimes.
It emerged that the suspects had used this approach since October, with shipments originating from another distribution hub located in Madrid. With this new information, authorities intercepted additional marijuana-containing packages.
The National Police continued to implement appropriate procedures to advance the investigation. These steps included forwarding the packages to the Provincial Scientific Police Brigade in Alicante. Experts from this unit employed specialized techniques to uncover clues about the authors and to piece together more details of the suspected offenses.
With the accumulated information, a search and arrest operation was planned against the three individuals accused of possessing the drugs. They had just left Alicante and were preparing to fly out of the country by plane from Barcelona Elis Prat airport.
Powerful police location and arrest device
A robust localization and arrest operation was launched to bring the facts to the attention of the National Police border control team at Barcelona airport. Forensic Police Group members targeted the three individuals, attempted to identify them, and halted them as they approached their vehicle in hopes of boarding a flight bound for Germany.
The National Police successfully removed approximately 46 kilograms of marijuana from the illicit market, distributed across six seized packages found with recent shipments. If left unchecked, this substance could have generated a substantial illicit market value, estimated at over ninety thousand euros based on kilogram-level sales in controlled settings [citation provided by law enforcement sources].
The detainees, Turkish and German nationals aged between 23 and 24, had no prior criminal records and were placed under the jurisdiction of the Investigations Courts of El Prat de Llobregat in Barcelona.