Raid on suspected arms dealers: ten arrests in Germany and Spain
Pistols from Turkey sold in Cologne cafes and shisha bars? Federal police and Cologne police strike, seizing 15 firearms and counterfeit cash.
Symbolic image · Photo: Wo st 01 / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 3.0 de (cropped and resized)
Ten suspects have been arrested in Germany and Spain in a raid on alleged arms and drug dealers, Germany's Federal Criminal Police Office (BKA) and Cologne police said on Friday, one day after the operations. Investigators believe the group mainly smuggled illegally manufactured firearms from Turkey into Germany. The guns were allegedly sold through cafes and shisha bars in the greater Cologne area. The raids were part of two parallel, overlapping investigations by the BKA and Cologne police.
The case began in January 2025, when officers found twelve semi-automatic weapons, so-called total forgeries, in a bed storage box in Cologne's Muelheim district. A cafe there is believed to have been the gang's main meeting point. "Sales talks were held with customers here and the weapons were ultimately handed over to them," said criminal director Michael Esser. Cannabis and cocaine also allegedly changed hands in connection with the cafe; the city has closed the cafe. Esser estimated each weapon sold for about 3,000 euros.
The Cologne investigation covers 16 suspects aged 17 to 50. Searches took place in Cologne, Wipperfuerth, Erftstadt and Sinzig, and police seized 15 firearms and 2,800 euros in counterfeit money. Investigators are still examining whether those arrested or their weapons are linked to shootings at buildings and people that have alarmed Cologne in recent months. "The availability of weapons also leads to weapons being used," Esser said. All suspects are presumed innocent.