Spanish police bust Ukrainian drone drug gang

Two “narcodrones” were allegedly used to bring hashish from Morrocco

Spanish police have disrupted a drug smuggling operation “to bring hashish over from Morocco using Ukrainian ‘narcodrones’,” the authorities in Madrid have announced.

The Straits of Gibraltar are less than 15km wide at their narrowest point, and Spanish authorities have long struggled to thwart smugglers from North Africa. While boats can carry more cargo, they are also easier to intercept – unlike drones.

“The ‘narcodrones’ were manufactured in Ukraine and then transported by road to the south of our country,” the Policia Nacional said in a statement on Thursday.

The drones were used by criminal groups in Campo de Gibraltar and Costa del Sol. Six searches were carried out in Algeciras and Marbella, while ten people were detained as part of the police operation. Seven of them have already been put in jail, the police said.

Dubbed “Operation Cyclone,” the investigation had the backing of Europol, as well as the police of Ukraine and Poland, according to Madrid.