Spanish police have dismantled a trafficking network moving migrant minors from the Canary Islands to France, uncovering forged documents, safe houses and an international route spanning three countries.
Spanish police have dismantled a criminal network accused of trafficking migrant minors from the Canary Islands to France, authorities announced on Thursday (November 13). The operation, carried out within the framework of Operación Tritón, led to the arrest of eleven suspects -- nine in Lanzarote, one in Las Palmas de Gran Canaria and one in the Spanish capital Madrid. Four of them have been placed in provisional detention.
"As part of Operation Tritón, the National Police have dismantled in Spain an international network dedicated to trafficking minors from the Canary Islands to France," the police said in their official statement.
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Investigation triggered by disappearances
The investigation began after a series of disappearances from youth protection centers across the Spanish archipelago in the Atlantic Ocean. According to the police, "the investigation began after the disappearance of 13 minors was detected at a center in Arrecife (Lanzarote) and one more at the centre in San Bartolomé de Tirajana (Gran Canaria) between November 2024 and May 2025."
The case intensified in May 2025 when officers stopped a Mauritanian man at Lanzarote airport attempting to fly to Madrid with three minors under the care of local authorities. One young woman initially believed to be a minor was later found to be of legal age and was also arrested.
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A transnational criminal structure
The dismantled network operated across several countries, say investigators. According to the Policía Nacional, the organization "used routes and contacts in Morocco, Ivory Coast and Spain to transport the minors and fraudulently provide them with documents, with France as their final destination."
The group relied on logistical support in Morocco to facilitate the minors' journeys to the Canary Islands, contacts in Ivory Coast to obtain forged documents, and an infrastructure of safe houses in Spain to shelter them before their transfer to France.
Two homes in Lanzarote were searched during the operation. Police seized "numerous documents, personal belongings, electronic devices and cash," belonging to the network.
While authorities confirmed that the minors' final destination was France, they have not disclosed the specific purpose for which they were being taken there.
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An ongoing investigation
The police emphasize that the case has not yet been closed. "The investigation remains open with the aim of locating and protecting the missing minors, and of establishing the international police-cooperation channels needed to fully clarify the facts," the statement said.
Regional authorities also highlight the wider structural problem. The government of the Canary Islands told the Spanish daily newspaper El País that there are currently around 300 open cases of minors running away from youth centers across the archipelago -- one indicator of a system under severe pressure.
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Overloaded reception system
The Canary Islands remain one of Europe’s main gateways for irregular migration, alongside Italy and Greece. The archipelago received nearly 47,000 migrants in 2024, the highest number on record. Although arrivals have decreased this year -- around 14,000 arrived between January and October -- the child protection system remains severely overstretched, say authorities on the islands.
More than 5,000 unaccompanied minors are currently housed in facilities with a capacity for only about 900. Health and social services have warned repeatedly that they are overwhelmed, creating vulnerabilities that criminal networks can exploit.
The President of the achipelago, Fernando Clavijo has long been calling for a system of solidarity to kick in across the rest of Spain, allowing for minors to be transferred more quickly to the mainland, and cared for in adequate facilities across all Spanish regions.
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With AFP