Spanish police have arrested one of Britain’s most wanted fugitives after dismantling an alleged drug trafficking and forgery network operating on the Costa Blanca, in an operation centred on the popular resort areas of Benidorm and nearby La Nucía.
The suspect, identified by well-placed sources as 49-year-old Simon Dutton from Bolton, Greater Manchester, was detained in La Nucía during a major Guardia Civil operation carried out in collaboration with the UK’s National Crime Agency (NCA).
The arrest came just hours after UK authorities launched a renewed appeal to locate 12 of Britain’s most wanted fugitives believed to be hiding in Spain as part of the long-running ‘Operation Captura’ campaign. ALSO READ: UK launches new hunt for 12 most wanted fugitives believed to be hiding in Spain.
Spanish authorities said the investigation began in November 2025 after the manager of a courier company in Benidorm alerted police to a suspicious suitcase destined for the UK. Officers discovered it contained 16 kg of cannabis resin, or hashish.
Initial inquiries led investigators to a woman suspected of organising the shipment using forged identification documents. Police later uncovered a wider network allegedly involved in transporting and attempting to recover the drugs using false paperwork.
As the probe developed, officers identified one of the suspects as a man subject to an international arrest warrant issued by the UK at the end of last year for offences linked to large-scale drug trafficking.
Raids carried out in Benidorm and La Nucía resulted in the arrest of four people in total, including Dutton. Officers also seized additional drugs, fake documents and around €4,000 in cash.
Footage released by the Guardia Civil showed heavily armed officers and sniffer dogs surrounding and storming a whitewashed villa while shouting in English: ‘Police, police.’
Video images also showed officers counting large bundles of cash, while a man believed to be Dutton was escorted to a patrol vehicle.
A spokesman for the Guardia Civil in Alicante said: ‘We have arrested one of the fugitives included in the UK-led international search operation against offenders linked to organised crime, coinciding with the presentation of the latest ‘Most Wanted’ campaign.’
‘The arrest has been carried out within the framework of an operation conducted in Benidorm and La Nucía against a network linked to drug trafficking and forgery, in which three other people have been arrested.’
Dutton was previously arrested in Greece in December 2015 and was later sentenced in September 2016 to 14 years in prison for organising large-scale cocaine importation and money laundering offences. He had been wanted by British authorities for a recall to prison.
Spanish police confirmed he now faces extradition proceedings to the UK, although he could also face charges in Spain relating to offences allegedly committed locally.
Dutton was among 12 men featured in the latest ‘Operation Captura’ campaign, which marks the 20th anniversary of the joint UK-Spanish initiative targeting fugitives believed to be hiding in Spain.
Since its launch, the campaign has led to the capture of 98 fugitives out of 111 publicly identified suspects.
Others on this year’s wanted list include 62-year-old Scotsman Derek McGraw Ferguson, wanted in connection with the 2007 murder of Thomas Cameron in Glasgow, and 33-year-old Spencer Dillon Lamb, who is sought over alleged drug supply and cultivation offences.
Spain’s Mediterranean coast has long been regarded as a refuge for foreign fugitives, particularly British and Irish nationals, attracted by the climate, large ex-pat communities and the region’s strategic importance in international drug trafficking routes.
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#OperacionesGC | Detenido en Alicante uno de los fugitivos más buscados del Reino Unido incluido en la campaña internacional “Most Wanted”
— Guardia Civil (@guardiacivil) May 14, 2026
📄Además, se han detenido otras tres personas por tráfico de drogas y falsedad documental
🧑🦱Las detenciones han coincidido con la campaña… pic.twitter.com/1tLXu5utQi
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