Spanish authorities dismantle two Algerian human trafficking networks

Police in the Spanish city of Murcia arrested five Algerians belonging to a human trafficking organization, which led Moroccan and Tunisian migrants by boat from North Africa to Spain.

Security investigations showed that the Algerian smuggling network was charging 5,000 euros from the migrants to take them to Spain in dangerous conditions, without relying on minimal security measures.

Expert investigators from the Spanish National Police obtained information that an organization dedicated to trafficking in human beings and narcotics was trying to establish its presence on the Murcian coast, more specifically in the La Manga region.

The Algerian organization was using boats that did not have any security measures. Sources from the National Police said in a statement that the transfers to the coast of the Levante peninsula are taking place in “inhumane” conditions, at an “exorbitant” price of about 5,000 euros per person and trip.

In a related context, the Spanish police announced the arrest of criminal elements who were exploiting migrant smuggling networks to transport drugs to Spain.

A source who spoke with El Diaro newspaper revealed that a criminal network specialized in smuggling migrants, the second organization to be brought down in a week, led by Algerians, was arrested on Tuesday.

The Spanish police stated, in a statement, that this network, which was dismantled in Malaga, was specialized in human trafficking through the “water taxi” system, which is based on making migrants pay in order to facilitate their transportation to Spain in dangerous conditions, in the absence of safety measures.

During this process, the police seized a six-meter-long boat used to facilitate illegal immigration, with driving mechanisms and a 150-horsepower engine.

In addition, the Spanish police discovered, after investigation, that the network was also involved in drug smuggling.

A group of Spanish newspapers criticized the Algerian attempts to “dump” the Iberian coasts with irregular migrants, in light of the political tension between the two countries against the background of the “Moncloa Palace” recognition of the autonomy initiative in the Moroccan Sahara.

The newspaper “El Mundo” criticized the weakness of border controls on the Algerian coast in recent weeks, which led to an increase in the number of “death boats” heading to Spanish cities, especially Almeria, which received more than one hundred illegal immigrants in less than 24 hours.