The Mossos d’Esquadra reported today on the arrest, which took place last Friday at noon on the AP-7 highway, as part of a coordinated operation to control the transport of animals coming from Northern Europe. The van driver, a 60-year-old man with no prior record, was transporting 14 puppies of various breeds (Capavoo, Cavalier, Maltipoo, and Teckel) originating from Slovakia.

The importation was irregular because the animals did not comply with current regulations. The puppies were only 10 weeks old, while the minimum legal import age is 15 weeks, and they also lacked the necessary sanitary guarantees, specifically regarding the effectiveness of the rabies vaccine.

In addition to the administrative complaint for violating animal sales law, the man was arrested as the alleged perpetrator of a crime of falsification of a public document. He had used the data of a zoological center in Baix Empordà that has been closed for over a year as the supposed destination for four of the puppies. The other ten were documented as heading to a zoological center in Huesca (Osca).

The detainee was brought before a judge the following day. The 14 puppies were immediately transferred to an animal shelter, where they will remain until their final destination is determined. The Mossos have opened an investigation to determine the real destination of the animals entering with false documentation to the closed center in Baix Empordà, and further arrests are not ruled out.