Catalan police search animal health lab for second time in African swine fever outbreak probe
Mossos d'Esquadra and Guardia Civil returned to the IRTA-CReSA facility in Cerdanyola del Vallès on Tuesday, collecting virus samples from the past five years as part of a judicial investigation into the origin of an African swine fever outbreak.
What happened
Police officers carried out a second search on Tuesday at the IRTA-CReSA animal health research centre in Cerdanyola del Vallès, Barcelona. The first search occurred on 18 December last year and lasted about 14 hours, with agents seizing documentation and virus samples from the prior three years. This time, the court ordered the collection of samples reaching back five years, according to sources close to the case.
Simultaneously, a joint team of Mossos and Guardia Civil entered the Centro de Biología Molecular Severo Ochoa in Madrid, which belongs to the Spanish National Research Council (CSIC). Both operations were ordered by the Court of Instruction number 2 of Cerdanyola del Vallès as part of a probe into a suspected environmental crime.
- First police search of IRTA-CReSA, seizing documents and virus samples from the past three years.
- ASF outbreak detected in wild boars in the Collserola park.
- Ministry of Agriculture releases official report confirming no genetic match and no biosecurity failures at IRTA-CReSA.
- Second police search at IRTA-CReSA and simultaneous entry at CSIC lab in Madrid, with sampling extended to five years.
Investigation details
The investigation seeks to establish the origin of an African swine fever (ASF) outbreak detected on 27 December in wild boars in the Collserola park, close to the IRTA-CReSA facilities. The judicial proceedings remain under seal, and police have not disclosed the specific information they were seeking during the second entry.
The outbreak prompted an immediate epidemiological alert. The lab’s proximity to the first infected animals and its work with ASF strains made it a natural focus of the inquiry, although no direct link has been established.
Independent evaluations
In parallel with the judicial investigation, several independent technical assessments have been carried out. A genomic comparison by the Institute for Biomedical Research (IRB Barcelona) found no genetic match between the virus strains handled at IRTA-CReSA and the outbreak strain. The results were made public in late December.
The Spanish Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food, supported by the national reference laboratory and the European Commission’s EUVET experts, conducted its own inquiry. That included new genomic sequencing and a technical inspection of the facilities. Its official report, released on 9 February, confirmed that the strains studied at the centre did not match the outbreak strain and that no structural deficiencies or breaches of biosecurity protocols were identified.
An external audit commissioned by the Catalan government also validated the robustness of the lab’s protocols and found no evidence of a virus escape.
Lab’s response
The IRTA-CReSA has issued a statement stressing its cooperation with the authorities.
From the first day, we have maintained an attitude of maximum transparency and full collaboration with the authorities. This collaboration will continue throughout the entire process, responding to any new request that the judicial authority may formulate.
The centre noted that all independent reviews to date have concluded that a leak from its facilities is not supported by the evidence.
