Operation 'Curricán': 30 arrested on child sexual offences in the Canary Islands

The Canarian regional police force — the Cuerpo General de la Policía Canaria (CGPC) — has raised to 30 the number of people arrested in the large-scale operation known as 'Curricán', linked to alleged sexual offences against minors under the age of 16, corruption of minors and public health offences. The announcement was made on 30 June 2026 by the Consejería de Presidencia, Administraciones Públicas, Justicia y Seguridad of the Gobierno de Canarias.

The operation, launched in the early hours of Monday, initially reported 17 arrests. As proceedings continued into Tuesday, that figure rose to 30. The investigation remains open and under a court secrecy order, and police sources have not ruled out further arrests in the coming hours.

Case overseen by a specialist court

The operation is being directed by the Sección de Instrucción del Tribunal de Instancia de Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, seat number 3 — formerly the Juzgado de Violencia sobre la Infancia y la Adolescencia de Las Palmas de Gran Canaria. According to newswire reports, the examining magistrate is Tomás Martín. A court secrecy order remains in place.

Some differences exist between sources regarding the precise focus of the investigation. Outlets citing the Consejería report that the case centres on the alleged sharing of sexually explicit images among minors. Canarias7, however, reports that the investigation targets an alleged network involved in the production and distribution of child sexual abuse material. The three categories of offences communicated officially remain the same: sexual offences against minors under 16, corruption of minors and public health offences.

Searches in Gran Canaria and El Hierro

Residential searches were carried out across nine municipalities in Gran Canaria, along with one operation in El Hierro. A minor discrepancy exists between sources on the Las Palmas de Gran Canaria figures: the Gobierno de Canarias news portal, elDia and elDiario report 14 searches there, while Canarias7 puts the number at 13.

The remaining breakdown is consistent across sources: four in Arucas, one in Teror, two in Santa Brígida, one in Ingenio, two in Telde, three in Santa Lucía de Tirajana, one in Mogán and one in San Bartolomé de Tirajana. A further search was carried out in El Hierro — specifically in Valverde, according to La Provincia, which cites CGPC sub-inspector Álvaro Molina.

According to La Provincia and elDia, officers seized large quantities of documentation and electronic devices during the searches, which will need to be analysed to determine the full extent of the alleged network, the nature of the material under investigation and the number of minors who may be affected.

More than 130 officers deployed

More than 130 CGPC officers from various operational units took part in the operation, including the Subgrupo de Violencia contra la Infancia y la Adolescencia, the Unidad de Seguridad Ciudadana, the Unidad de Intervención Policial, the Unidad de Vigilancia e Inspección, the Grupo de Menores, the Subgrupo de Auxilio Judicial and the Grupo de Guías Caninos. La Provincia also includes the Grupo de Operaciones Aéreas in that list.

Given the scale of the operation, officers were deployed from the Comisaría Insular de Tenerife to reinforce the personnel already assigned to the Comisaría Insular de Gran Canaria on the island.

The investigation remains open and proceedings are subject to a court secrecy order. Police sources have not ruled out further action in connection with the case.