Cádiz, Spain – Spanish authorities have dismantled a criminal organization that used fixed-wing drones to transport hashish from Morocco across the Strait of Gibraltar, uncovering an operation capable of delivering more than 200 kilos of drugs in a single night.

The Guardia Civil, working with the Royal Moroccan Gendarmerie under Operation “Ruche,” detected repeated unidentified flights between the two countries that led them to the group. Officers seized eight handmade drones ready for use and ten more awaiting assembly.

Investigators confirmed the drones could fly more than 200 kilometers. They were launched from a residence in Alcalá de los Gazules, where the organization maintained a fully equipped workshop used to fabricate, assemble, and repair the aircraft.

The group operated mostly at night, launching up to ten drones simultaneously toward Morocco. There, the aircraft were loaded with hashish before returning to Spain. During the return flights, the drones released the drug packages over rural areas near Vejer de la Frontera and Tarifa using custom-built release mechanisms.

Each bundle carried fluorescent markers and a radio-frequency geolocation system linked to a handheld controller that emitted sound signals when the packages were nearby. Collection teams equipped with night-vision devices retrieved the drops and moved the drugs to rented rural houses used as temporary storage sites.

After releasing their loads, the drones returned to landing points in Alcalá, where other members of the group recovered them for immediate reuse or repair.

Investigators found that technicians within the organization had modified commercially sourced components from Asian manufacturers, reinforcing fuselages with lightweight materials and upgrading electronics to extend autonomy, durability, and payload capacity. Ten additional drones still in unopened boxes were awaiting assembly.

On October 22, officers intercepted a vehicle carrying 57.2 kilos of hashish that had arrived via drone. The driver attempted to evade police before being detained, and several officers were injured in the pursuit, with one requiring surgery.

The operational phase took place on November 10, with coordinated raids in Alcalá de los Gazules, Vejer de la Frontera, Algeciras, and San Roque. Eight additional suspects were arrested, and authorities seized more than 150 kilos of hashish, €320,000 in cash, eight fully assembled drones, ten more under construction, and a large cache of components, tools, and electronics.

The investigation is directed by the Court of Instruction No. 4 of Algeciras and coordinated with Spain’s Anti-Drug Prosecutor’s Office, with Europol facilitating information exchange across multiple EU countries.

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