Irish fugitive wanted over drugs and weapons offences arrested in Costa Blanca
Gerard Couzens
Police on Spain's Costa Blanca have arrested an Irish fugitive wanted over drugs and weapons offences.
The man was held in Teulada, a half-hour drive north of Benidorm, despite trying to show police a fake ID photo to avoid arrest.
Spanish Civil Guard officers confirmed on Wednesday the 33-year-old was wanted on a European Arrest Warrant (EAW) issued by the Irish authorities. An elite fugitives unit based in Madrid assisted local police in his arrest.
A spokesperson for the Civil Guard said: “The Civil Guard has arrested an Irish fugitive in Teulada who was being hunted by authorities in his country for eight offences related to drug trafficking and unlawful weapons possession.
“Everything started with an anonymous tip-off. A duty court in Denia near Teulada has remanded him in jail, pending the development of the extradition process.”
The Civil Guard had initially been told the fugitive could be in a neighbouring municipality, the spokesperson added.
“Officers received information about the presence in the municipality of Benissa of an Irish national who was the subject of a European Arrest Warrant relating to the drugs and unlawful weapons charges.
“The Civil Guard in the area launched an investigation with the assistance of the centralised UCO fugitives unit.
“In the subsequent days, several operations were carried out to identify people and locate the fugitive.
“These actions resulted in success when, during special police preventative control work in Teulada, a vehicle with the fugitive inside was identified.
“He initially tried to deceive officers by showing a photo on an ID document that had been faked, but he was nonetheless arrested.
“As well as being held on foot of the European Arrest Warrant, he was also held on suspicion of forgery,” the spokesperson added.
The operation to track down the arrested man began on December 12th, with his arrest coming three days later. However, details of the arrest were only made public on Wednesday, along with an image captured during the operation.
