Nose for cash: Guardia Civil dog sniffs out 195,000 euros hidden in a vehicle in inland Spain

Crime

Nose for cash: Guardia Civil dog sniffs out 195,000 euros hidden in a vehicle in inland Spain

When stopped in Albacete province at a checkpoint, the car's Ukrainian owner could provide no explanation for the source of the money

Añádenos en Google Pompa, the young Belgian Malinois sheepdog, and the seized money. (GC)

J. M. L.

Albacete

20/05/2026 a las 10:38h.

Pompa, a young, female, Belgian Malinois sheepdog from the Guardia Civil's canine service, discovered 195,000 euros hidden between the seats of a vehicle ... at a checkpoint on the A-31 dual carriageway near Chinchilla de Montearagón (Albacete).

The car's owner, a Ukrainian, could not explain where the money came from, so officers confiscated it all. According to the law on money-laundering prevention, the maximum amount of cash that can be transported without the need to declare it is 100,000 euros or its equivalent value in foreign currency.

The man was cited for an administrative infringement of this law and officers are now investigating the source of the money.

The cash was divided into several packages and Pompa persistently indicated on where it was concealed. She is a K-9 with a long track record of successful interventions. Last year, she discovered 280,000 euros in undeclared cash at a traffic stop on the A-43 road in Villarrobledo (Albacete).

The money was hidden under the seat of a vehicle, split into 28 bundles of 50-euro notes. The car's owner, a 35-year-old man from Marbella, was also unable to explain its origin.

Pompa checking out a vehicle. (GC)

Still, sniffing out money isn't Pompa's only skill. Her trained nose is also capable of locating narcotics and finding missing persons. Last year alone, thanks to her efforts, the Guardia Civil managed to seize more than half a million euros of illicit origin in the province of Albacete. According to canine experts, the Belgian Malinois breed stands out for its intelligence, strong protective instinct and high energy levels when put to work, making it an ideal canine for working with law enforcement.