Hitmen get cheaper in Spain: €1,700 for a killing

The rise of hitmen in Spain: killing for €1,700

How much does it cost to order a murder in Spain? The figures circulating point to around €1,700. Not the price of an apartment, or even a mid-range car. That, according to these reports, is the price of a contract killing in 2025.

What before 2020 was 20 executions a year has turned into more than 50. The profile is no longer the classic settling of scores between narcos. The list of motives has grown: debt collection, drug rip-offs and wars between organizations with international branches that bring their conflicts onto Spanish soil.

The Mijas case: cryptocurrency as a motive for murder

The most recent example peine in December in Mijas. A man was kidnapped at his home along with his vvife while the attackers emptied his digital cryptocurrency wallet. He ended up murdered; his vvife was released in a forest. If the intent was robbery, the outcome was an execution.

The case illustrates a worrying diversification: contract violence is no longer limited to the traditional settling of scores, but adapts to new assets. Cryptocurrencies have become a target and the hitman a collection tool.

Falling prices and social normalization

Despite the gravity, some play it down with dark humor: at that price, it's cheaper than private medical treatment. The comparison is macabre, but it reflects an uncomfortable reality. Organized crime has normalized the outsourcing of violence and prices have come down.

Meanwhile, the public debate remains focused on other priorities. At this rate, the only thing getting cheaper in Spain is the cost of hitmen.