Civil Guard Bag Christmas Seafood Haul
Spanish authorities have joined forces with their counterparts in Portugal and France to have bust a gang smuggling contaminated seafood ring and seized over 30 tonnes of tainted molluscs worth nearly 10 million Euros.
Footage released by Spain’s Guardia Civil shows police officers seizing the contaminated seafood illegally harvested by organised criminal groups in Portugal and Spain.
The 17-day operation led to the seizure of more than 30 tonnes of molluscs and six tonnes of glass eels, valued at up to EUR 10 million on the seafood market.
A total of 62 members of the group were arrested. Authorities have identified six of the suspects as “High-Value Targets”.
Europol said in a statement obtained by Newsflash on 19th December: “The criminal gangs mainly fished Japanese clams, which are enjoyed by locals and tourists in coastal areas, including during the festive season.
“The gangs falsified the contaminated seafood documentation to present it as suitable for human consumption.
“This could have developed into a major health issue, as the continuous consumption of contaminated molluscs puts people at risk of serious diseases such as hepatitis.
“The investigation led to the uncovering of organised criminal groups involved in trafficking either clams or glass eels, depending on the season of the year, in France, Portugal and Spain.
“This led to the dismantling of a major criminal network involved in the illegal poaching, gathering and smuggling of glass eels.”
It continued: “One kilo of these molluscs can be sold on the seafood market for up to EUR 25.
“Criminal networks exploited fishers, originating from Asian countries, paying them just EUR one per kilo of molluscs they fished.
“The fishers would fish illegally in Portugal, sending the molluscs to Spain and on to the criminal networks.
“The contrast between the price of the molluscs on the market and the fishers’ earnings led authorities to confirm the link between environmental crime and trafficking in human beings for labour exploitation for the first time ever in the EU.”
Europol experts from the Environmental Crime Unit identified the criminal trend and lent their expertise to the Member States involved.
Europol facilitated operational meetings, coordinated the action days, and provided financial support to national authorities.
During the action days, Europol experts were deployed on the ground in Portugal, Spain, and France.
Their operational analysis uncovered new “High-Value Targets”, prompting further investigations.
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