The arrest occurred on Monday, during a routine border check in La Jonquera, a municipality in Catalonia located next to the border with France. According to La Vanguardia, authorities had been following him from Empuriabrava, a large marina on Spain’s Costa Brava, where he was tracked down through his girlfriend.
Police said Zavialov worked for Russian organized crime groups, specializing in trafficking arms and explosives worldwide.
Zavialov, 28, was travelling with a fake Belgian passport that was detected by the border authorities. He was taken to a police station where his true identity was revealed, along with an alert indicating he was armed and dangerous.
Border agents arrested Zavialov, who remains in custody pending an extradition hearing.
