What Happens If You’re Caught with Drugs at the Airport?

We are criminal defense attorneys in Madrid specializing in airport cases.

Did you know that more than 45% of drug trafficking in Spain occurs by air?

Every day dozens of people attempt to smuggle drugs through the airport. This statistic positions Adolfo Suárez Madrid-Barajas airport as one of the strategic points in the fight against drug trafficking and organized crime.

In the first half of 2024, 3,770 kilos of cocaine were seized along with a total of 4.5 tons of toxic substances, resulting in the arrest of 422 people for drug trafficking offenses.

Spain is one of the countries most committed to fighting international drug trafficking and has a specialized unit at Madrid airport for this purpose.

What is the drug trafficking offense at the airport?

Drug trafficking, regulated by article 368 of the Spanish Criminal Code, encompasses activities such as cultivation, production, transport, sale and distribution of toxic, narcotic and psychotropic substances. Any act that facilitates their consumption or introduction into the country, including smuggling drugs through the airport is considered a drug trafficking offense.

Drug transport at airports

Airports, such as Madrid-Barajas, are entry points for the introduction of illegal substances. The authorities

How are drugs intercepted at an airport?

Drug interception at airports follows a procedure regulated by the Criminal Procedure Law and the Criminal Code. State Security Forces and Bodies, together with customs authorities, conduct routine controls to prevent drug trafficking.

What drugs do they detect at airports?

At airports, security systems and police forces are prepared to detect a wide variety of drugs. The most commonly detected substances are: cocaine, heroin, cannabis, methamphetamines, ecstasy (MDMA), ketamine, LSD or fentanyl.

Customs controls: initial detection

Routine controls are performed where specialized agents inspect luggage, passengers and merchandise to observe if they find prohibited substances.

• Inspection of luggage and passengers: Use of X-ray scanners, chemical detectors and trained dogs. If after the X-ray scanner drugs are found in the body, a medical examination can be ordered under judicial authorization, always guaranteeing the passenger’s legal rights.
• Risk profile analysis: Identification of suspicious behavior or unusual travel patterns.

Identification and search of suspicious luggage

When irregularities are detected:

• The passenger is separated and accompanied to

What to do if you are arrested at the airport with drugs?

1. Stay calm and remain silent.
   You have the right not to testify against yourself and not to confess guilt. It is important that you wait to be assisted by an attorney before declaring anything. You can use this moment to inform your family and have them seek an attorney specialized in crimes against public health.
2. Avoid answering questions without an attorney.
   Although what you say to the Police has no validity in the trial, it can harm you if contradictions arise in the judicial procedure. The best thing is to have an attorney at Madrid airport and receive advice and follow their strategy.

Pretrial detention for drug trafficking at the airport

Once the arrest is formalized, judicial proceedings will begin for a crime against public health.

In many cases, those arrested come from abroad so they could face admission to pretrial detention. This will take into account the severity of the prison sentences, the quantity of drugs seized, their market price and the country of origin.

There is the possibility of admission to pretrial detention given the lack of ties and flight risk that those arrested for drug trafficking at the airport have.

How does my case get affected if I am a foreigner?

If you are a foreigner, your case will be tried under Spanish law, if you are ultimately found guilty, you will serve a sentence for trafficking