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After a months-long manhunt, Karim El Bakkali, implicated in the murder of two civil guards, David Pérez and Miguel Ángel González, surrendered to Spanish authorities on Thursday. Three other drug traffickers remain in hiding in Morocco, where they were located months ago by the Guardia Civil. International arrest warrants have been issued for them, including their full names, details of the charges, and evidence against them.
El Bakkali, considered the main suspect in the deaths of the two civil guards and the injury of two others during a boat collision in the port of Barbate, is also facing charges of drug trafficking and smuggling. A native of Tangier, he has a criminal record and enemies on both sides of the border, according to Spanish media. Negotiations for his extradition to Spain were ongoing as authorities located him in Dalia, Morocco.
El Bakkali was notorious in drug trafficking circles for his expertise in operating speedboats, which drug networks use to transport narcotics between Morocco and the Andalusian coast. He remained hidden for several months but was eventually spotted along the Tangier coastline, evading Guardia Civil authorities.
According to Spanish media, El Bakkali surrendered at 1 a.m. on Thursday to the Guardia Civil in Barbate. He is expected to appear before the Court of First Instance No. 1 in Barbate today, Friday. Sources close to the case confirmed that the focus in recent months has been on gathering sufficient evidence to request his extradition from Morocco for crimes committed in Barbate. The Guardia Civil has also compiled evidence against his accomplices who were with him during the collision.
Authorities are keeping the investigation under wraps as they continue to collect information on the movements of El Bakkali and his co-conspirators. Following the incident, operations against drug trafficking along the Cádiz coast, particularly in the port of Barbate, have intensified.
Following El Bakkali’s arrest, the government representative in Andalusia, Pedro Fernández, expressed his satisfaction, praising the «absolute cooperation» with Morocco in locating him. He emphasized that international collaboration, especially with Morocco, is producing results, with «correct and fully coordinated» efforts contributing to key investigations like this one.
Fernández also noted that El Bakkali remains in Guardia Civil custody pending testimony and that he «will be presented to the Court of First Instance in Barbate, which has been investigating the case since the events occurred».
The incident dates back to the night of February 9 in Barbate. Civil guards Miguel Ángel and David were dispatched, along with colleagues, under orders from the colonel in charge of the Cádiz Command to expel several drug boats taking refuge in Barbate’s harbor during a storm.
The city’s mayor, Miguel Molina, had informed the Cádiz Civil Guard Command that drug traffickers were using Barbate's harbor as a shelter. A special underwater activities group (GEAS) based in Algeciras was alerted and dispatched to the scene, where they expected the drug boats to flee at the sight of authorities, rather than be arrested or have their boats confiscated, according to Iberian media.
Of the six boats at the scene, four left, while two remained. The guards, with their 6-meter-long boats and 80-horsepower engines, proceeded to carry out their orders, despite facing drug boats weighing around 5,000 kilograms and powered by engines exceeding 350 horsepower.
The drug traffickers attempted to intimidate the guards by ramming their boats. In the ensuing collision, the traffickers quickly wrecked the guards' boat. Two officers were killed in the attack, and another lost an arm.
