Man arrested at El Prat with 31 kilos of cocaine hidden in luggage on flight from Mexico
A passenger arriving from Mexico City was arrested on 16 August at Barcelona airport with more than 31 kilos of cocaine distributed across two suitcases.
Arrested at El Prat after arriving from Mexico with more than 31 kilos of cocaine in luggage
A passenger from Mexico City was detained on 16 August at Josep Tarradellas Barcelona-El Prat airport after National Police officers found 31.093 kilos of cocaine hidden in his two suitcases, according to ondacero.es.
The detection occurred during routine checks at the arrivals terminal. Officers noticed the traveller's behaviour: he appeared nervous and his answers to officials' questions were unconvincing. This attitude led them to take the passenger and his luggage to the facilities of the Customs Service of the Tax Agency for a more detailed inspection.
Inside the suitcases, police located 26 blocks of a whitish and compact substance. Police reagent tests confirmed it was cocaine. The total weight of the drug amounted to 31.093 kilos, which led to the immediate arrest of the traveller on suspicion of a crime against public health. The detainee was subsequently brought before a judge and a remand in custody order was issued.
The National Police made the operation public on Monday, although the arrest had occurred days earlier. The investigation must determine the specific origin of the drug, its final recipient, and the role played by the arrested individual within the transport network.
The case falls within the security operations that law enforcement maintains on certain international routes. The National Police refers to "hot flights" as those connections that receive special police attention given the possibility that organisations engaged in drug trafficking use passengers as couriers. The authorities warn that these networks may use travellers to introduce drugs both in Spain and in other European countries.
The discovery at El Prat occurs in a context of intense activity against cocaine trafficking in Spain. The latest available data from the Centre for Intelligence against Terrorism and Organised Crime (CITCO), corresponding to 2025, reflect that cocaine seizures fell compared to the previous year to around 77 tonnes, compared to over 123 tonnes recorded in 2024. This fall has generated debate among authorities and experts about the real evolution of cocaine entering the country, whilst criminal organisations continue diversifying their methods.
An earlier case illustrates this diversification: in February of this same year, Customs Surveillance, the National Police, and the Brazilian Federal Police dismantled an organisation that attempted to introduce approximately 1,500 kilos of cocaine into Spain through Adolfo Suárez Madrid-Barajas airport, on that occasion hidden in marble pieces.
Source: Google News ES — Crime (es)