Police in Spain uncovered several nazi memorabilia and illegally-trafficked firearms in a raid spanning three locations, Spain’s Guardia Civil announced Tuesday.
In the raid that took place in Andalucia, southern Spain, “agents discovered an arsenal of 160 firearms, including 121 small arms, 22 assault rifles, and eight submachine guns, among others,” a Guardia Civil press release stated. (REPORT: Police Find Animal Feces, Acid, Inedible Substances In Counterfeit Spice Factory Raid)
Intervenido un arsenal de armas que surtía a los narcotraficantes de Costa del Sol y Campo de Gibraltar. De las 160 armas hay 30 fusiles de asalto y subfusiles, además de casi 10.000 cartuchos, 270 cargadores y hasta una granada con explosivo militar. https://t.co/VQF4O9C0Pv pic.twitter.com/9x64r99Dlt
— Guardia Civil ???????? (@guardiacivil) December 29, 2020
Cops also found 9,967 cartridges of various calibers, eight suppressors, 273 magazines, and even a grenade, according to the Guardia Civil.
As part of the raid, two Germans and one Britisher have been detained under suspicion of heading an international arms ring that sold guns to drug traffickers, the agency reported.
According to the Guardia Civil, the three men are slapped with charges of “involving in a criminal group, illegal weapons trafficking and storage, ammunition trafficking, drug trafficking, and counterfeiting documents.”
The men allegedly ran a now-dismantled trafficking ring for more than three years, during which they acquired weapons from Eastern European countries.
They would then modify the weapons in a secret workshop at one of the detainees’ homes before selling them to drug dealers, the release stated.
One of the detainees, connected to Neo-Nazis and alt-right groups, owned a “museum” of Nazi-themed objects, uniforms, and flags in his home and a ship registered in his name, Guardia Civil reported.
Photos released by the Guardia Civil show rooms full of Third Reich relics, including Hitler portraits, Nazi military uniforms, emblems, and medals, from the man’s collection, according to Newsweek.
Local authorities conducted this raid after noticing an uptick in firearms use in so-called “rollovers”—drug theft and violent score-keeping between drug traffickers — in Costa del Sol and Campo de Gibraltar, Spain, according to the Guardia Civil.
German Police, local Andalucian Police, and the Guardia Civil collaborated in the raid, the release stated.