A major anti-immigration network busted in Spain led to 129 arrests as authorities dismantled a scheme designed to secure residence permits through fraudulent marriages between Spaniards and non-EU foreigners. An Elche-based lawyer was identified as the alleged ringleader of this operation, which had been active in Alicante, Murcia, and other provinces since 2017. The network reportedly produced a large number of sham marriages to facilitate legal residency for immigrants, with the greatest activity concentrated in the Alicante region and nearby areas. The operation involved individuals from Morocco and Algeria, among others, who were willing to pay substantial sums to secure a quicker legal status in Spain.[Police briefing] Immigrants, primarily from Morocco and Algeria, paid as much as 10,000 euros to marry Spanish nationals and streamline their residency process in the country.
The three-year investigation conducted by the Alicante Provincial Immigration Brigade, Unit Against Immigration Networks and False Documents (UCRIF), uncovered 72 illegal weddings and 51 residency permissions obtained through these marriages. The home base of the operation appeared to be an Elche agency, where a lawyer orchestrated a structured network with clearly defined roles for different participants, all working in concert to promote legally dubious marriages between Spanish citizens and non-EU foreigners.
The lawyer, identified as the principal organizer, reportedly recruited individuals willing to act as spouses and sought people interested in normalizing their irregular status in Spain, with typical arrangements valued at tens of thousands of euros. Once a so-called partner was secured, multiple Spaniards could be paired with several foreign clients, enabling the alleged financier to collect a commission for each arranged union.
The plan then moved to stage two: creating the appearance of a genuine emotional relationship and establishing a believable location for the wedding. In many cases, Santa Pola emerged as the primary venue for the sham marriages. Researchers catalogued this phase with terms describing the social patterns used to disguise the fraud as legitimate union activity, while investigators gathered documentation that would later appear authentic to authorities.
Registration played a key role in formalizing civil marriages, and in numerous instances the required documents were forged. In other cases, the documents existed but were obtained through arrangements with property owners who allowed use of residences for the marriages. These irregularities were consistently accompanied by financial commissions. In addition to fake registrations, fraudulent lease arrangements arose in Santa Pola, aligned with the involvement of two local real estate agents.
The scheme’s final phase involved fabricating wedding witnesses and instructing both witnesses and the contracting parties on what to say. This preparation aimed to generate a convincing personal narrative that could withstand scrutiny by administrative bodies. The strategy, described by investigators as a method to prevent detection, relied on convincing the authorities that the couples shared a genuine relationship and planned to reside at the alleged addresses.
Police attributed the overall plot to the Elche-based lawyer, whose involvement was characterized as profit-driven. The conspirators reportedly acted for financial gain, with each participant receiving a fee for their role in the process.
UCRIF investigators identified 72 marriages arranged by the detained lawyer. The case was referenced in court during ongoing proceedings handled by Elche’s Instruction Court No. 2, which sought annulment of fraudulent residence permits and irregular marriages. Authorities also seized a range of documents believed to be forged, including lease contracts and registration records, and moved to revoke 51 residence permits issued to relatives connected to the cases.
Among the 129 people detained, ages ranged from 23 to 71, with a roughly even gender distribution: 66 men and 63 women. The majority were citizens of Spain, Morocco, and Algeria, though individuals from Iran, Argentina, and Bangladesh were also represented in the group. The investigation illustrates how a tightly coordinated network can exploit civil registration systems and residency processes, leveraging counterfeit paperwork and carefully staged personal narratives to obtain legal status for foreign nationals. Authorities continue to pursue additional leads and review related documents as part of the broader case.[Police update]