WATCH: Spain’s largest port again in the spotlight as 11 tonnes of hash hidden among melons enters from Morocco

POLICE have busted a major hashish smuggling ring between Morocco and Spain, seizing more than 11 tonnes of the drug worth €60 million and arresting 10 suspected traffickers.

The twin operations in Malaga and Algeciras netted 11,125kg of cannabis resin hidden in melon shipments and bedroom furniture – the latest in a string of massive hauls that underline southern Spain’s status as Europe’s gateway for Moroccan hashish.

Officers launched their investigation in July after intelligence-sharing with Moroccan authorities tipped them off to a Spanish-Moroccan gang planning shipments through Algeciras, Spain’s busiest cargo port.

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On September 10, surveillance teams tracked a refrigerated lorry as it rolled off the ferry from Tangier, flanked by two scout cars watching for police checkpoints.

When officers stopped the convoy on Malaga’s outskirts, they found pallets of melons – and buried among the fruit, 9.3 tonnes of tightly wrapped hashish bricks. Six men aged 27 to 35 were arrested and remanded in custody.

Days later, a second team tailed a panel van from Tangier to an industrial estate in Malaga. Inside, officers discovered 1,825 kg of hashish concealed in bed bases, wardrobes and false floors, plus more than €14,000 in cash. Four more suspects were arrested and jailed.

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While the 11-tonne haul is substantial, it falls short of Spain’s record cannabis seizures. 

The Guardia Civil confiscated 48 tonnes at Algeciras port in June 2015, and police in Almeria seized 15.36 tonnes in July 2025.

Authorities credited the operation’s success to unprecedented cooperation with Morocco, with intelligence-sharing and judicial approval for cross-border arrests.

The investigation remains open and more arrests are expected.

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