Guàrdia Urbana officers in Barcelona arrested a man posing as a taxi driver after discovering he was driving under the influence of drugs, without a valid licence or insurance, and using a counterfeit vehicle inspection sticker.
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The incident occurred on 16 March when the city police force’s Central Traffic Unit pulled over what appeared to be a standard taxi during a routine patrol in the Sant Andreu district. Officers became suspicious, prompting a full check of the driver and his vehicle, according to reports from local outlets Tot Barcelona and Metrópoli Abierta.
A Deceptive Facade
The vehicle, a Dacia Lodgy minivan, was fully kitted out to mimic an official city taxi, designed to attract unsuspecting passengers. However, the investigation quickly exposed a comprehensive deception. Officers found that the metropolitan taxi licence displayed was cancelled earlier in 2026, rendering his operation illegal.
The driver’s personal documents were also invalid; he presented an expired driving licence. The situation escalated significantly when a roadside drug test returned a positive result. This infraction alone poses a severe risk to public safety, and the recent revelation that cocaine use in Barcelona has tripled highlights the growing challenge of drug-related crime facing the city’s authorities.
Catalogue of Violations Uncovered
As checks continued, the list of violations grew. Officers confirmed the vehicle lacked mandatory insurance coverage. Furthermore, its official Technical Vehicle Inspection (ITV), the compulsory vehicle safety and emissions test in Spain, had long expired.
In a deliberate attempt to evade detection, the driver had placed a counterfeit ITV sticker on the windscreen. The Guàrdia Urbana discovered that the sticker was legitimate but belonged to a completely different vehicle, a tactic used to present an appearance of legality during patrols.
The sheer number of offences presented a clear and immediate danger to the public. Had the driver picked up any passengers, they would have been travelling in an uninsured, uninspected vehicle operated by an individual under the influence of drugs and without a valid licence.
Official Response and Wider Crackdown
The Guàrdia Urbana, a force reportedly facing its own internal challenges, including a deepening staffing crisis, acted swiftly. They immediately impounded the vehicle and handed it over to the Institut Metropolità del Taxi (IMET). The metropolitan authority will now investigate the case as an instance of intrusion and fraudulent use of a public transport service.
This arrest comes amidst a broader police effort to tackle persistent crime in the Catalan capital. In a separate operation, the Mossos d’Esquadra, the regional police force of Catalonia, recently conducted a major sweep under its ‘Plan Kanpai’ initiative. The plan, which targets multi-recidivist offenders, resulted in 87 arrests across Barcelona and its metropolitan area. According to a police statement, those detained collectively held 293 previous criminal records. The operation also led to 29 criminal investigations and 232 administrative complaints.
