Investigation Reveals Expanded Scope of Canary Islands Smuggling Network

Members of a criminal network operating in Crevillent, Callosa de Segura and Lorca were identified by police hearings as facilitating the entry of small groups of migrants arriving by boat from the Canary Islands. These individuals, after leaving conservation facilities, were alleged to be involved in a broader range of illicit activities beyond the initial migrant trades. The investigations point to fraud against the rights of foreign nationals and the illicit use of third party passports to move unaccompanied foreign minors, also known as menas, from Canary Islands airports to the mainland by air. Police sources indicate conversations that reference drug trafficking and counterfeit clothing and footwear from well-known brands, as well as schemes to bribe customs officials to move goods and to disguise the sale of fake employment contracts, along with forged registration and Covid certificates, among other documents. (National Police)