Spanish police have arrested two former IRA members who they believe were leading a smuggling and money laundering ring.
The pair were arrested in Lanzarote, in the Canary Islands, as part of a nationwide swoop and five other suspected members of the network were detained in Alicante, Malaga and Murcia.
One of the two former IRA members arrested was the gang’s leader, according to the national police, which identified the other member as his partner.
In 2012, the man was named as a member of a 1989 IRA ambush team that killed two senior RUC officers. His partner was formerly known as “Europe’s most dangerous woman”.
The smuggling ring laundered an estimated €10.5 million through the purchase of properties along the Spanish coast and the creation of front companies, according to the police.
A total of 11 properties have been searched and around 90 bank accounts have been frozen in relation to the investigation, which took place with the cooperation of Irish and British authorities.
