Islands of Vulnerability: How the Canary Islands Became a Hub for Child Sex Trafficking

The Canary Islands have emerged as a focal point for organised child sex trafficking and exploitation as a sharp rise in unaccompanied migrant arrivals overwhelms local social services. Many children arriving from West Africa are young, unsupervised, and unable to speak Spanish, making them vulnerable to criminal networks that groom, move and traffic minors across borders.

Operation Triton: a cross-border network exposed

Police investigations under the name Operation Triton revealed a sophisticated trafficking ring that moved at least 13 girls from a reception centre in Lanzarote to mainland Europe, reportedly ending in France. Authorities say the network spanned several countries: transport was arranged through Morocco, false identity documents were produced in West Africa, and safe houses in Spain temporarily sheltered the victims during their journey.

Spanish National Police intercepted three girls attempting to board a flight with forged papers; one of the three proved to be an adult posing as a child. Eleven people were arrested across the islands and mainland Spain in connection with the probe. Allegations include membership of a criminal organisation, document forgery, human trafficking, offences against family rights, obstruction of justice and child pornography. Police seized false documents, electronic devices and cash during raids.

Rising arrivals and stretched resources

Arrivals to the archipelago have surged in recent years. Frontex records show 28,819 African migrants reached the islands this year by raft or small boats known as cayucos, compared with 462 a decade ago. Nearly 6,000 unaccompanied minors now live in reception and foster accommodation across 86 centres — housing around 37% of Spain's unaccompanied children. Staff and officials warn the system is at breaking point.

Francis Candil, deputy minister for social welfare in the Canary Islands government, acknowledged operational limits: 'They are not under strict 24-hour control. When they have been in the home for a while, they go out on their own, go to the movies, go to activities, they start to have an independent life.' The regional government also reports roughly 300 open cases of minors absconding from care homes; many do so intending to move on to other destinations, while others remain unaccounted for.

Forced prostitution and adult trafficking

Authorities say adults are also being trafficked through and into the islands. Separately, prosecutors have charged members of an alleged Nigerian gang with forcing women into prostitution and using ritualistic intimidation to control them. One victim described being transported through Europe, coerced into sex work in resort areas, and told she owed traffickers a large debt that she could only repay by surrendering earnings under threat of violence to herself or her family.

Prostitution in Spain occupies a legal grey area: while pimping and trafficking are crimes, the status of venues and the legal frameworks for sex work remain contested, complicating enforcement and victim protection. Police estimates identify thousands of women working in the sex trade, with a proportion reporting trafficking offences; many more cases are believed to go unreported.

What needs to change

Experts and officials say preventing exploitation will require bolstering reception capacity, improving guardianship and registration procedures, increasing language and integration support, and enhancing transnational law enforcement cooperation to dismantle trafficking networks. Child protection workers say targeted training, better tracking of minors in care and stronger coordination between local, national and international agencies are urgent priorities.

'We live in a world where monsters exist,' Mr Candil said, urging continued improvements to detection, protocols and staff training. 'There could be mafias behind this, unscrupulous people.'

Unless structural gaps in oversight and support are addressed, criminal networks will continue to exploit the vulnerabilities of displaced children and adults seeking safety in the Canary Islands.