A fugitive wanted in Italy for drug trafficking has been arrested on Madrid's Gran Via

The National Police in collaboration with Italy’s Polizia de Stato arrested a violent fugitive on Monday in Madrid’s Gran Via who had a European arrest and extradition warrant as an alleged member of an organization dedicated to drug trafficking and money laundering in Italy.

According to the General Directorate of Police, the fugitive organized, together with another fugitive from justice, the sale of three kilograms of cocaine in a hotel in the Italian city of Cagliari, a deal in which they “dropped” their buyers, causing “serious injuries”.

Italian investigators, on the trail of the two criminals, gathered evidence that one of them could be on Spanish territory, information that they passed on last June to the National Police.

complex localization

The fugitive’s whereabouts was complicated because he used fake documents from different nationalities to make it difficult to identify him.

After numerous procedures carried out in the provinces of Alicante, Barcelona and Malaga, the fugitive was placed in a hotel in the center of Madrid, where he was with his romantic partner, both with Spanish documents.

Agents posted an explosive device around the hotel on Monday, waiting for the couple to leave.

Accommodation in a central hotel in Madrid

Around 12 noon, the man and woman left the compound, accompanied by their pets, at which time the police proceeded to arrest them.

The fugitive threatened to flee, which the agents were forced to soften, causing a struggle in which two policemen suffered minor bruises and abrasions.

The agents confiscated the couple €3,800 in cash, three mobile phones, a Dominican passport, a Spanish ID card, and a fake driver’s license.

One of the forged documents contained a photograph of the fugitive’s accomplice, who was also arrested for forging documents.