Police find 74 migrants packed into a Ceuta flat and arrest the owner

The raid in El Príncipe

National Police officers found 74 people in an irregular situation packed into a flat in the El Príncipe district of Ceuta, according to the force. The operation took place on Tuesday, 20 October 2026, and police announced it on 22 October. Police said the building's location made the operation complex and required a large deployment of officers. Those found included 54 men, 10 women and 10 unaccompanied minors. The Foreigners Brigade (Brigada de Extranjería) worked with the Superior Police Headquarters in Ceuta, and the case is being pursued jointly with prosecutors against the illicit trafficking of migrants.

Arrest and charges

Police arrested a Ceuta native who owns the property and whom they consider the main person responsible for a criminal organisation suspected of facilitating irregular immigration and other crimes. The man is suspected of facilitating irregular immigration, offences against workers' rights, injuries to a minor and labour exploitation of minors. He has been placed at the disposal of the judicial authority. Police say he was keeping the group in the building until a way could be found to move them irregularly to the Iberian Peninsula. In a press note, the force explained why the case was difficult.

The difficulties posed by the building's location were compounded by the danger attributed to the criminal organisation, whose members have numerous police records.

Conditions inside the flat

Police describe overcrowding in small spaces with no basic health or sanitary guarantees, and say the suspect subjected the occupants to repeated violence and intimidation. Investigators have found indications of injuries and physical assaults on several occupants. Some minors may have been victims of physical aggression, including a dog bite. El Mundo reported that the dog belonged to the detainee and that the group had reached Ceuta during border assaults on 30 and 31 July before being moved to the flat. El Mundo also reported that adults and minors were made to do hard work without pay, a practice investigators are examining.

Eviction pressure

Police link the high number of people found to tighter enforcement that led to the eviction of the settlements at Playa Benítez and El Trampolín. The clearances pushed part of the migrants living there toward other parts of the city, including El Príncipe. Police say they maintain "intense operational activity" both near the building and within the neighbourhood. They describe the operation as a significant blow to the group's logistical infrastructure. Officers from police units along the Andalusian coast and central services contributed to the case, which remains under investigation with the prosecutor's office.