Spanish National Police, working with Brazil’s Federal Police and Swiss authorities, have dismantled an international network accused of trafficking endangered birds and animals. Two suspects were arrested in Gran Canaria after the operation, following an investigation that started when a Swiss citizen was stopped at Rio de Janeiro airport with 24 protected bird eggs hidden under her clothing. The probe began in October 2025 after the arrest in Brazil. Agents later identified the network’s main figures, including the leader and the supplier and coordinator who arranged illegal departures from South America. Police say the supplier carried out 117 suspicious movements between Brazil and Europe, with stays of less than three days, apparently to evade controls. At the start of October, Brazilian authorities flagged a new trip to Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, with a stopover in Switzerland, and asked for urgent cooperation. Authorities say the supplier met the ringleader in Switzerland and both boarded flights to Spain. Spanish police then issued arrests, and the two suspects were taken into custody in Gran Canaria. The case is being handled with extradition proceedings. Judicial authorities coordinated eight simultaneous searches in Brazil, Switzerland and Spain to preserve the animals and prevent evidence being destroyed. In Gran Canaria, police searched two hotel rooms and seized €30,000 in cash, along with tools including syringes used for implanting microchips and animal identification tags. In Brazil and Switzerland, six home searches were carried out. Investigators found numerous specimens of dead marmosets, taxidermied animals, and bone remains of protected species. The suspects are charged with belonging to a criminal organisation and international trafficking of protected species. The operation resulted in four arrests and international extradition proceedings have started for those held in Gran Canaria.