In collaboration with the Colombian National Police, the Civil Guard has arrested two members of an international criminal organisation of ‘invisible drug traffickers’ linked to the powerful ‘Clan del Golfo’. This organisation is responsible for bringing more than 120 tonnes of cocaine into Europe annually through the main ports in the Netherlands, Belgium and Spain.
The Central Operational Unit (UCO) operation resulted in the seizure of ten tonnes of cocaine in various raids and the arrest of five Colombian nationals. According to sources close to the investigation, confirmed by Europa Press, two of the suspects were arrested in Ibiza.
The investigation began in 2022, when several ‘invisible’ or ‘fourth-generation’ drug traffickers were identified as being responsible for coordinating and organising most of the cocaine that floods European ports each year.
According to the Civil Guard, the so-called ‘invisible drug traffickers’ are characterised by their avoidance of any public exposure and their operation behind seemingly legal business structures. ‘They do not appear in traditional investigations or participate directly in the logistical infrastructure, using intermediaries and front men to avoid detection,’ they said.
Five high-value detainees
Operation Gulupa targeted this network of low-profile drug traffickers with extensive international mobility. The operation was led by the Special Anti-Drug Prosecutor’s Office of the National Court and resulted in five arrests: three in Spain and two in Colombia. All of those arrested are considered high-value targets. Seven simultaneous searches were also carried out in Spain and Colombia.
The UCO believes that the dismantled network had established strategic alliances with local criminal organisations in Panama, Ecuador, Costa Rica and the Dominican Republic. These countries were used as transit platforms to offer à la carte shipments to customers in Europe.
It highlights that they had ‘direct contact’ with suppliers from the so-called ‘Clan del Golfo’, which is considered one of the largest criminal organisations in the world. This ensured the supply of large quantities of cocaine.
Money laundering and encrypted communications
Within this network, there was a group dedicated exclusively to laundering illicitly obtained capital through financial schemes that combined the use of offshore companies and cryptocurrency transactions. During the investigation, active cryptocurrency transactions totalling an estimated $700 million were identified.
The investigation was reinforced by communications intercepted on the encrypted application known as Sky ECC. This made it possible to verify the structure of the criminal organisation and its operational capabilities, as well as to attribute multiple cocaine seizures to it, ‘all with an unprecedented level of detail’, according to the Civil Guard.
The operation was carried out by the Central Anti-Drug Group of the Central Operational Unit (UCO) of the Civil Guard and the Colombian National Police (DIPOL), coordinated by Europol and the Technical Judicial Police Unit (UTPJ) through the GDIN project. During the operational phase, support was provided by the Judicial Police and the Civil Guard Company of Ibiza.