Mossos arrest 50 in Catalonia over network allegedly selling fake job contracts to migrants

The arrests

The Mossos d'Esquadra, Catalonia's police force, announced on Saturday, 7 November 2026, that they had detained 50 people in Barcelona and surrounding towns. The detainees are 48 men and two women. Seven are suspected members of a criminal organisation, three of whom have been placed in prison, and 43 are businessmen allegedly linked to the fraudulent applications. The operation ran in two phases on 26 and 27 October and involved 81 officers from the Criminal Investigation Division (DIC), mainly its Central Human Trafficking Unit and its Central Organised Crime Area.

Most arrests took place in Barcelona, L'Hospitalet de Llobregat, Badalona, Santa Coloma de Gramenet and Sant Adrià de Besòs. Other arrests were made in Sabadell, Terrassa, Vic, Sant Boi de Llobregat and Sant Vicenç dels Horts.

Suspected members7

Businessmen43

Suspected members

7 people

Businessmen

43 people

Data from the article text

How the network allegedly operated

According to the investigation, the group approached Pakistani citizens who wanted residence and work permits in Spain and charged them up to 30,000 euros for documents and a job contract. Businessmen allegedly agreed to supply employment contracts and supporting paperwork in exchange for payment, and those contracts were used to regularise people already in Spain or to facilitate their entry. Between March 2022 and July 2023 the network handled 224 contracting files from abroad. Of these, 108 received favourable resolution, and the investigation calculates that the organisation could have obtained more than 3.2 million euros.

Files processed224

Favourable resolution108

Files processed

224 files

Favourable resolution

108 files

Data from the article text

Suspected members face alleged charges of belonging to a criminal organisation, offences against the rights of foreign citizens and document forgery. The businessmen face alleged offences against the rights of foreign citizens and document forgery.

Origins of the investigation

La Vanguardia reports that the case grew out of an earlier probe into human trafficking for labour exploitation. Officers carried out searches in late February 2024 in that case, including at an administrative agency in Barcelona whose main suspect had processed fraudulent hiring applications. Forensic analysis of the computers seized there allegedly revealed a new criminal structure based in Barcelona, with collaborators in Pakistan. According to the investigation, the organisation has been active since 2019, with a hierarchical structure and defined roles, mainly based in Catalonia and with branches in Pakistan.

What comes next

The investigation remains open, and further arrests are not ruled out. The case is handled by investigating section 27 of the Barcelona Court of First Instance and by the Barcelona Prosecutor's Office for Trafficking and Foreigners' Law.