Gang using helicopters to smuggle drugs busted in Spain in rare operation against aerial trafficking
Spanish police said Saturday they had foiled a criminal group that used helicopters to smuggle hashish from Morocco, in a rare operation against air drug trafficking.
The helicopters were capable of transporting between 500 and 900 kilograms of drugs, which were stored in rural properties and warehouses in southern Spain before being distributed by road to other European countries, the Civil Guard said in a statement.
Police seized one of the helicopters, 1,448 pounds of hashish, five firearms, cash and vehicles during searches in the provinces of Malaga, Almeria and Murcia.
“The nighttime movements of several individuals under investigation between Málaga and Almería have raised suspicions among Civil Guard investigators of a possible large-scale drug trafficking operation,” the Civil Guard said. “Agents discovered that these movements were the result of close collaboration with others who frequently made drug shipments from Morocco.”
Six arrests were made during this operation in which Moroccan, Belgian and Swedish law enforcement also participated.
“It is rare that helicopters are used to smuggle drugs, but sometimes they (criminal gangs) try to do so. Remember that helicopters are easy to detect and difficult to buy on the black market,” a police source told the Reuters news agency.
The police released several images of the operation, called “Giro”, on social networks.
The helicopters landed in sparsely populated areas, where several people were waiting to unload the hashish and transport it in pickup trucks to various storage facilities, police said.
Spain’s close ties with Latin America and its proximity to Morocco make it a key entry point for drugs into Europe, but smuggling usually takes place by sea.
Spanish police also discovered networks using drones to transport drugs from Morocco last year.
Last month, Spanish police said they disrupted local operations of the Jalisco Next Generation Cartel (CJNG), designated a terrorist organization by President Donald Trump, made 20 arrests.
In October, Spanish police said they had seized 6.5 tonnes of cocaine and arrested nine people after a U.S. tip led them to attack a ship off the Canary Islands. The DEA provided key “information” that made the operation successful, police said.
