Taulant Toma captured in Tarragona: the "escape artist" arrested after 8 months
Spanish police have arrested 42-year-old Albanian Taulant Toma in Tarragona, who escaped from Opera prison in December 2025. Known as the "escape artist", he had fled four times from penitentiaries in Italy and Belgium.
Taulant Toma arrested in Spain after eight months on the run
Spanish national police arrested 42-year-old Albanian Taulant Toma, known as the "escape artist", in Tarragona's Campclar neighbourhood. According to Google News IT — Crime (it), the arrest took place on 23 August 2026, ending an eight-month fugitive period that began with his escape from Opera high-security prison in the Milan area on 7 December 2025.
From Opera prison, Toma had lowered himself from his cell using knotted sheets after sawing through the bars, scaling the six-metre perimeter wall in the dead of night. He was serving a sentence with a release date in October 2048, linked to a series of offences including robbery.
Resistance at arrest and accomplices on scene
At the time of arrest, according to news agency "Europa Press", Toma allegedly put up strong resistance and was assisted by several compatriots present in the area. One of them reportedly attacked and wounded a police officer, whilst another managed to escape by throwing a Sig Sauer pistol into the bushes, which was later recovered by the Mossos d'Esquadra.
At the police station, Toma presented false documents. With that same forged identity, he already had a criminal record in Girona for weapons and explosives possession. Officers also seized two 500-euro banknotes believed to be counterfeit.
The judge ordered preventive custody without bail in Mas d'Enric prison in Tarragona, pending completion of extradition proceedings to Italy.
A seventeen-year history of escapes
For Toma, this was not his first escape. His history with penitentiaries began in 2009, when he escaped from Terni prison during a football match in the Sabbione courtyard.
In February 2013 he fled Parma prison together with another inmate who was serving a life sentence. That accomplice was killed by a jeweller in November 2015 during a robbery at a villa. After a few months, in September 2013, Toma was located and apprehended in Belgium, where he was transferred to a penitentiary not far from Liège. There too he managed to evade guards and security systems, disappearing once again.
The escape from Opera in December 2025 is the fourth in total: three in Italy and one in Belgium. It remains to be determined which penitentiary Toma will be transferred to once the extradition procedure is completed.
Source: Google News IT — Crime (it)