Arrested with Drugs at a Spanish Airport: What to Do and How to Defend It

The seizure of drugs at major airports —Madrid-Barajas, Barcelona-El Prat— is one of the most frequent settings of the offence against public health. As criminal-defence lawyers in drug cases, we explain what you face if you are arrested as a 'courier' or for transport, and how the defence is built, always with full respect for the presumption of innocence.

The seizure at the airport

The intervention usually occurs at the customs control or after a surveillance operation: luggage with hidden compartments, drugs strapped to the body or, in the most serious cases, body-packing (carrying capsules inside the body). The seizure is followed by arrest, the reading of rights and, normally, a statement. What you do in those first hours is decisive.

The 'courier' or 'mule'

The courier is the person who transports drugs on behalf of others, often for a sum of money, or recruited through deception, need or vulnerability. Their position in the scheme —mere carrier vs organiser— matters: for the purposes of penalty and mitigation, the last link is not the same as the person directing the operation. The defence works to place the investigated person correctly in that chain.

The aggravating factors that may apply

On top of the basic offence under Art. 368 CP, aggravations may operate: the significant quantity of the amount (Art. 369.1.5), which raises the penalty one degree; and the extreme severity of Art. 370.3 CP, which expressly contemplates the use of ships, vessels or aircraft as a specific means of transport, raising the penalty by one or two degrees. The exact classification —and contesting it— is therefore decisive.

Lines of defence

1. Lack of knowledge of the load (absence of intent): the offence requires knowing that drugs are being carried. A 'blind setup', a tampered suitcase or a deceptive errand may exclude intent. The prosecution relies on indications (payment, route, behaviour); the defence rebuts them one by one.
2. Lawfulness of the search and the evidence: examining how the customs and personal search was carried out, the chain of custody of what was seized and the purity analysis, which for serious-harm substances may place the amount below the significant-quantity threshold.
3. Position in the scheme and mitigating factors: establishing the status of last link, serious addiction (mitigating factor of Art. 21.2 CP) or effective collaboration (Art. 376 CP) can substantially lower the penalty.
4. A foreigner's safeguards: the right to an interpreter and consular assistance, the breach of which may affect the validity of the proceedings.

Who tries these cases

Investigation and trial generally fall to the courts and the Provincial Court of the place of seizure. Where there is a criminal organisation operating across several provinces or internationally, jurisdiction may be assigned to the National High Court.

What to do if you are arrested at the airport

• Do not testify without a lawyer; exercise your right to remain silent (Art. 118 LECrim).
• Request an interpreter and consular assistance if you are a foreigner.
• Keep any data about how the trip was entrusted to you (messages, contacts, tickets), key to the lack-of-knowledge defence.

Defence with Alonso Sala

At Alonso Sala, a criminal-defence firm in Madrid (C/ Velázquez 27) with coverage throughout Spain, we assist people arrested with drugs at the airport from the very first hour. Read more on our drug trafficking page.