Spanish police have arrested a Dutch national working for the Cali cartel, one of Colombia’s most notorious drug syndicates, following the raid on a villa in the coastal town of Marbella.

The man, a Dutch national of Colombian descent, is said to represent the cartel in Europe, particularly in the UK and the Netherlands, Spanish media report.

The man, accused of large-scale money laundering, had been on the Interpol wanted list for years, La Razon said, and had fled the Netherlands to hide in a luxury villa in Marbella.

The raid on the house, following a two-year investigation into an international gang operating in the province of Málaga, netted €85,000 in cash, expensive watches, computers and mobile phones and over 15 credit cards – some of them giving access to crypto currency accounts. It is thought the man may have laundered over €6m using the digital currency.

Some $170,000 dollars were also found at his home in Delft by Dutch police, who assisted in the operation.