A Spanish man and his Colombian wife have been arrested in Jubera (La Rioja) accused of smuggling pre-Christopher Columbus artefacts stolen from various archaeological digs across South America - mainly Ecuador and Peru.

More than 700 pieces - including items such as masks, pendants, ceramics and paintings - recovered during the operation are being catalogued at the Regional Archaeological Museum of Madrid prior to their repatriation.

The couple, who had checked in with four heavy suitases, were followed by surveillance officers from Barajas airport to the warehouse in Jubera where the artefacts were found after arriving on a flight from Bogota on April 30th.

Investigators have since found overwhelming evidence to suggest that the couple had been trading for around six years, buying from Colombian middlemen and selling to mostly European buyers, mainly in France - where an auction had been organised for later this month.