SPANISH customs authorities have arrested a senior anti-drug trafficking official just days before his scheduled retirement, marking the latest corruption scandal to hit Barcelona’s troubled port operations.
Francisco Javier Martín Miñana, deputy head of Catalonia’s Regional Customs Surveillance Operational Unit, was detained by a specialised Madrid-based team from his own service in an investigation related to smuggling activities.
The 61-year-old career civil servant, who holds the highest rank of A1 on Spain’s civil service scale, was due to retire on July 9 after decades in the force.
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He has now appeared before a Barcelona court on charges ‘related to smuggling’, according to legal sources cited by EFE.
“We have arrested him, but the investigation is still under seal,” confirmed a spokesperson for Spain’s Tax Administration Agency (AEAT), which oversees customs operations.
The arrest represents another blow to the credibility of Barcelona port’s anti-corruption efforts.
Last year, another senior customs official, Manuel Corredoira, was sent to pretrial detention for allegedly appropriating drugs previously seized at the Catalan port.
That case remains pending trial.
Miñana had been a prominent figure in high-profile operations against international drug networks.
Just last year, he worked alongside Catalonia’s Mossos d’Esquadra police to dismantle a major cocaine smuggling ring that hid drugs in jam containers shipped from Colombia.
That operation resulted in 40 arrests and the seizure of over 100 kilograms of cocaine worth nearly €6 million, along with cash, gold bars and firearms.
Miñana personally briefed the media on the successful bust.
The Customs Surveillance Service (SVA) has faced mounting criticism in recent years over both corruption scandals and operational failures.
The department’s flagship patrol boat, the Cóndor, has been plagued with technical problems since its launch in 2021 and currently sits immobilised in Cádiz, leaving just one vessel to combat drug trafficking in the Canary Islands.
The service has also been criticised for using outdated software to monitor drug traffickers and fraudsters, hampering its ability to combat increasingly sophisticated criminal networks operating through Spanish ports.
Barcelona port has long been considered a key entry point for South American cocaine into Europe, with criminal organisations exploiting both legitimate shipping routes and corrupt officials to move massive quantities of drugs through the facility.
The SVA handles highly sensitive information crucial to tax investigations that often lead to criminal proceedings, making corruption within its ranks particularly damaging to Spain’s broader fight against organised crime and money laundering.
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