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MADRID: Spanish police have dismantled a criminal network that trafficked migrant minors from the Canary Islands to France, arresting 11 people, authorities said Thursday.
The investigation began after 14 minors went missing from youth care centers on the islands of Lanzarote and Gran Canaria, Spain’s National Police said in a statement.
In May 2025, officers stopped a Mauritanian man at Lanzarote airport as he attempted to board a flight to Madrid with what appeared to be three minors.
Police arrested the man and one of the alleged minors, who was actually of legal age, after discovering the minors were under the ward of a youth care center on the island.
An investigation then uncovered a “well-organized network” with logistics in Morocco, contacts in the Ivory Coast for falsified documents, and facilities in Spain to temporarily house minors before they were taken to France.
Two homes in Lanzarote were searched, and authorities seized documents, electronic devices and cash.
Nine suspects were arrested in total in Lanzarote, and one each in Madrid and Gran Canaria.
They face charges including document forgery, child abduction, involvement in a criminal organization and child pornography.
Police are still searching for the missing minors.
They face charges including document forgery, child abduction, involvement in a criminal organization and child pornography.
Spain is one of three main entry points for irregular migrants into Europe, alongside Italy and Greece.
The Canary Islands, off northwest Africa, are a key gateway, with nearly 47,000 migrants arriving last year — a record for the second consecutive year — though arrivals are down this year.