18 arrested in Spain over €32.8m VAT fraud scheme linked to alcohol imports

27 March 2026 , 16:21

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At the request of the European Public Prosecutor’s Office (EPPO) in Madrid (Spain), 18 presumed members of a criminal network, including five suspected ringleaders, were detained on Wednesday for their alleged involvement in a €32.8 million VAT fraud scheme linked to imported alcohol from several EU Member States.

Searches were carried out in 12 locations in the provinces of Barcelona, Tarragona, and Valencia, targeting companies’ premises, houses of suspects, and tax warehouses. In addition, law enforcement agents seized bank accounts belonging to 60 individuals and companies under investigation, cars, 40 real estate properties, and €430,000 in cash. Additional seizures were executed in Portugal.

The investigation uncovered a criminal organization that used shell companies located in Belgium, Portugal, and Spain, and false invoices to evade the payment of taxes for importing and selling large quantities of alcoholic beverages into the Spanish market. The fraudulent scheme involved two Spanish tax warehouses – facilities where certain excise goods can be stored without immediate payment of taxes. The VAT becomes payable only when the products leave the warehouses for commercial distribution or consumption. Once there, fraudulent intermediaries (‘missing traders’) based in Spain controlled by the organization acquire the alcohol and become liable for VAT, but they vanish without fulfilling their tax obligations. The alcohol is then sold to a chain of fraudulent companies, using false invoices, to hide the whole deceptive circuit. Finally, the alcohol is distributed in Spain, using distributors controlled by the criminal network. The VAT derived from these fictitious operations is never paid.

It is estimated that the scheme allowed for an illicit profit of approximately €32.8 million between 2019 and 2025, causing an equivalent damage to the Spanish state and the EU budget. It is understood that the profits were then laundered. One of the companies under investigation had connections to the Turks and Caicos Islands, a British overseas territory.

The investigative measures counted on the support of the Spanish National Police’s unit specialized in economic and tax crime (Unidad de Delincuencia Económica y Fiscal de la Policía Nacional – UDEF) and Spain’s Tax Agency (Agencia Estatal de la Administración Tributaria), as well as law enforcement authorities in Portugal (Guarda Nacional Republicana - GNR) and Belgium (Cellule de Traitement des Informations Financières – CTIF).

All persons involved are presumed innocent until proven guilty by the competent Spanish courts of law.

The EPPO is the independent public prosecution office of the European Union. It is responsible for investigating, prosecuting, and bringing to judgment crimes against the financial interests of the EU.

Spain: The European Public Prosecutor’s Office detains 18 suspects in an investigation into a €32.8 million VAT fraud related to alcohol importation

(Luxembourg, March 27, 2026) – At the request of the European Public Prosecutor’s Office (EPPO) in Madrid (Spain), 18 presumed members of a criminal network, including five suspected ringleaders, were detained on Wednesday for their alleged involvement in a €32.8 million VAT fraud scheme linked to the importation of alcohol from several EU Member States.

During this operation, searches were conducted in 12 locations in the provinces of Barcelona, Tarragona, and Valencia, including business premises, suspects’ homes, and tax warehouses. Furthermore, agents seized bank accounts belonging to 60 individuals and entities under investigation, vehicles, 40 properties, and €430,000 in cash. Additional seizures were also made in Portugal.

The investigation revealed a criminal network using shell companies based in Belgium, Portugal, and Spain, utilizing false invoices to avoid the payment of taxes related to the importation and sale of large quantities of alcoholic beverages in the Spanish market. This fraudulent scheme involved two tax warehouses in Spain – facilities where certain excise products can be stored without immediate tax payment. VAT becomes payable only when the products leave these warehouses for distribution or consumption. At that point, fictitious intermediaries (“missing traders”) based in Spain, controlled by the organization, would acquire the alcohol and become responsible for VAT but would disappear without meeting their tax obligations. Subsequently, the alcohol was sold to a series of fraudulent companies using false invoices to conceal the entire fraudulent circuit. Finally, the alcohol was distributed within Spain through distributors controlled by the criminal network. The VAT from these fictitious transactions was never paid.

It is estimated that the scheme allowed the suspects to obtain illicit profits of around €32.8 million between 2019 and 2025, causing equivalent damage to the Spanish state and the EU budget, with these profits later subject to alleged money laundering. One of the companies under investigation had links to the Turks and Caicos Islands, a British overseas territory.

The investigative measures had the support of the Spanish National Police’s economic and tax crime unit (Unidad de Delincuencia Económica y Fiscal – UDEF) and the State Agency for Tax Administration, as well as law enforcement authorities in Portugal (Guarda Nacional Republicana – GNR) and Belgium (Cellule de Traitement des Informations Financières – CTIF).

All persons involved are presumed innocent until proven guilty by the competent courts in Spain.

The European Public Prosecutor’s Office is the independent public prosecution of the European Union. It is responsible for investigating, prosecuting, and bringing to trial crimes affecting the financial interests of the EU.