A large and elaborately structured crime ring that smuggled narcotics and thousands of migrants between Spain and North Africa has been broken up in a major police operation, Spanish authorities said on Saturday.
A total of 78 people, including four of the international group's ringleaders and a so-called hawala banker specializing in informal financial transactions, were arrested, according to the police.
The investigation, which began in 2023, also involved officers from the EU law enforcement agency Europol, as well as police in Poland, Portugal and France, where the gang - which operated from Spain - had bases, as it did in Italy.
The broadly networked and tightly organized group of Algerian origin is said to have smuggled more than 2,000 migrants into Spain over the years in at least 64 crossings using high-speed boats. In doing so, it generated estimated revenues of more than €24 million ($28 million).
Although migration figures have fallen sharply, the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR) has recorded more than 12,000 migrants arriving in Spain via the Mediterranean since the start of the year.
Despite successes in intercepting people-smuggling and drug trafficking operations, many gangs in the Mediterranean stay enmeshed in the illegal business through shifting alliances, constantly reorganizing themselves.
The hierarchically organized gang initially used speedboats - capable of speeds of well over 100 km/h thanks to sets of powerful outboard motors - to transport drugs from Spain to Algeria in North Africa, and on the return journey smuggled migrants into Spain.
The crossings in these boats - also known as 'Mediterranean Ferraris' - at extremely high speeds and in rough seas were said to have been extremely dangerous for the migrants. In some cases, they were even tied down to prevent them from falling overboard.
Eighteen of the boats, with a total value of more than €5 million, as well as weapons, drugs and equipment for encrypted communication, were seized.
The criminal network was said to be led by a single leader who was responsible for planning, coordinating, supervising and financing all criminal activities.
This gang leader provided substantial financial resources, supplied weapons and drugs, and oversaw the distribution of drugs such as the party drug ecstasy in various North African countries, the police added.
The organization had three hierarchical levels. The first level was responsible for strategic management and overall control of operations. The second level comprised pilots, transport drivers and operational managers; while the third level included staff, recruiters, suppliers, security personnel, logistics and financial staff, front men and others.
Internal discipline was enforced through a strict internal control system based on intimidation, threats, coercion and extreme physical violence. There was ample evidence of reprisals, settling of scores, abductions, assaults and death threats, including against migrants, authorities said.