Illegal migration through Serbia to Spain: Cuban smuggling scheme exposed

In Spain and Serbia, law enforcement dismantled a criminal network involved in the smuggling of Cuban nationals into EU countries via the Western Balkans. Migrants were offered a package of services for around EUR 3,000, which included relocation, health insurance, and accommodation. The organisation is also suspected of document forgery and money laundering, according to Europol.

How the criminal network operated

The scheme started with a flight from Havana to Belgrade — usually with a transit through Frankfurt. A visa-free regime between Cuba and Serbia was used, which was in force until April 2023 and allowed legal entry to the country of destination at the first stage of the route.

For 3000 euros migrants were offered a “package of services” including flight tickets, invitation letters, medical insurance and accommodation bookings. This created the appearance of a legitimate trip and facilitated border crossings at the initial stage.

After arriving in Serbia, participants of the route were met by members of the network and accommodated, after which they were organised to continue movement by land transport through North Macedonia and Greece, and then through several EU countries towards Spain.

Legalisation in Spain

The final point of the route was Spain, where migrants were mainly accommodated in the province of Málaga. There they were given instructions on how to apply for international protection and legalisation.

Investigators established that before applying for asylum migrants were advised to report their passports as lost. This practice allowed concealment of the real travel route and made it difficult to determine the country through which they entered Europe.

The absence of border entry stamps was used to create a new documentary history of stay, on the basis of which migrants could indicate recent arrival in Spain.

Conditions of transport and treatment of migrants

According to the investigation, throughout the route migrants were often in a vulnerable situation and dependent on members of the network. Their movement was controlled step by step, without the possibility to independently change the route or conditions of stay.

In Serbia premises were used where high occupancy and lack of basic living conditions were recorded. From there further transport along the Balkan route was organised.

In some cases migrants were left without food, communication or basic necessities in transit countries. Minors travelled together with adults and were often under their care during the journey.

Financial scheme and scale

Funds paid by migrants were distributed through various channels, including bank accounts, international money transfer services, payment applications and cryptocurrency. This structure was used to complicate financial tracing.

More than 2,200 money transfers linked to suspects based in Spain were identified during the investigation. This indicates a systematic financial operation accompanying the network’s activities.

According to Europol, the criminal group may be linked to nearly 30 migrant smuggling operations since 2021. At least 40 Cuban nationals are considered confirmed victims of this scheme.

Operation and arrests

As part of a joint operation by Spanish and Serbian police and Europol, eight people were arrested, including two alleged leaders of the criminal network. Operational activities were carried out in the province of Málaga and other regions.

Four searches and one inspection at a hospitality establishment were conducted. Seized items include bank cards, electronic devices, documents, around 10,000 euros in cash and two imitation firearms. In addition, 28 bank accounts and financial products linked to suspects were frozen. These measures are aimed at blocking financial flows used in the activity of the network.

An expert was sent to Spain for operational processing of data and cross-checking with Europol databases. The current scheme was not isolated. In 2023, a similar operation against a network using the same route through Serbia and the Balkans resulted in 62 arrests.

Strengthening the fight against illegal migration in the EU

Exchange of data and solidarity mechanism

Illegal migrant smuggling remains one of the key criminal threats to the European Union. In December 2025, EU Regulation 2025/2611 was adopted, which strengthens cooperation between member states. In March 2026 the European Centre Against Migrant Smuggling (ECAMS) was created. It provides systematic data exchange and coordination of actions.

From 12 June 2026 the new EU Pact on Migration and Asylum will start to apply. The reform includes 10 legislative acts. It provides for distribution of refugees between EU members, the so-called solidarity mechanism. It provides redistribution of applicants and joint response to migration crises, as well as strengthened cooperation with third countries.

Centres for migrants

Mandatory checks for security, health and vulnerability will be introduced at external borders. The collected data will be entered into the EU-wide Eurodac database and used in further asylum processing.

Standard asylum application processing and accelerated processing are provided. The second option is intended for applicants with a high probability of rejection. In this case migrants will be placed in special border centres and decisions will be taken in shortened timeframes. The reform also provides for a unified accommodation system, where reception and return centres will play a key role. They are intended to speed up processing and organise the return of persons who received a rejection.