Drone catches Romanian drug fugitive relaxing in inflatable pool before special forces raid in Bistrița
A 35-year-old Romanian man wanted by German authorities for drug trafficking was arrested while relaxing in an inflatable pool on his apartment terrace in Bistrița, after a police drone spotted him.
Drone surveillance
Romanian police used a drone to monitor the suspect before the intervention. The 35-year-old Romanian citizen, who had his legal residence in Germany, was spotted on the terrace of an apartment in Bistrița, where he had installed an inflatable pool. Officers from the Bistrița-Năsăud County Police Inspectorate, the Criminal Investigation Service, and the Special Actions Service were involved.
Arrest without incident
The man was handcuffed and removed directly from the pool. Despite his known violent history, no incidents occurred during the operation.
On 26 June 2026, following cooperation between ENFAST Romania and ENFAST Germany, police officers from the Bistrița-Năsăud County Police Inspectorate located and detained a 35-year-old man, a Romanian citizen domiciled in Germany, in an apartment in Bistrița municipality.
Extradition process
After the arrest, the suspect was held for 24 hours in the Bistrița-Năsăud Detention and Preventive Arrest Center. He will be presented to the Cluj Court of Appeal, which will rule on a provisional arrest warrant with a view to handing him over to the German authorities.
International cooperation
The operation was made possible by information exchange through the European Network of Fugitive Active Search Teams (ENFAST), which connects 39 states and specialises in the rapid location of internationally wanted persons.
Behind this operation was extensive collaboration between Romanian and German police, through the ENFAST European network, specialised in the rapid location and arrest of fugitives.
