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article_detail
Date Published: 12/01/2022
ARCHIVED - 11 arrested for irregular migrant smuggling on Murcia coast over Christmas
The accused reportedly captained several immigrant boats travelling to the Region of Murcia
National Police officers made 11 arrests over the Christmas period after ideal weather conditions and calm seas allowed nearly 150 irregular migrants to arrive on the Costa Cálida via boat.
The detainees have been accused of captaining pateras (small boats used by immigrants) as they sailed from Africa to the Spanish coast carrying migrants attempting to illegally enter Murcia. In total, 11 Algerian nationals aged between 19 and 51 have been arrested and are suspected of belonging to one of the migrant smuggling mafias operating in the Mediterranean.
Several immigrant boats have been intercepted by coastal authorities in the past month, mostly in areas close to the coast of Cartagena, including Cabo de Palos. Some of the passengers were rescued after spending days adrift and many migrants required medical attention due to the poor sailing conditions of the pateras used by immigration mafias.
These criminal organisations pay little or no mind to the safety of the migrants they transport, resulting in an avoidable loss of life on many occasions. People from Algeria, Morocco and other African countries are promised safe and quick entry to Europe in exchange for a sizeable sum of money, but many don’t survive the journey.
In some instances, the mafias have even been known to simply dump their passengers close to the Spanish coast and speed off in order to avoid capture by the police.
Throughout 2021, 95 criminals were arrested in connection to these illegal immigration attempts, of whom 87 are currently in prison, while in the neighbouring province of Alicante the authorities have recently arrested 22 more members of these organisations.
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