John Culatto
A WANTED suspected drug smuggler has been arrested coming into Gibraltar and will now be extradited to Morocco for trial.
Moroccan National Hassan El Achab, 53, was arriving in Gibraltar on Monday evening when the Borders and Coastguard Agency checked his documents.
It revealed that El Achab had a diffusion notice to his name, made by Interpol Rabat to arrest him on the spot.
The Royal Gibraltar Police then moved in to take him into custody.
The wanted man is charged with taking part in a criminal conspiracy over the possession, exportation and marketing of controlled drugs in Morocco.
El Achab, who is registered as a resident of Belgium, was in the Magistrates’ Court this morning.
This appearance was the first part of the Provisional Warrant of Arrest issued under Section 9 (6) of the Extradition Act 2018.
Gibraltar cooperated with Spain in a massive combined operation against drug lords based in La Linea over the summer.
Raids were conducted at an area known as Narcoville in the El Zabal neighbourhood of Gibraltar’s neighbouring town.
