Five arrested as police smash gangs smuggling migrants from Ceuta to mainland Spain

Police have arrested five people after smashing two gangs dedicated to trafficking migrants from Ceuta to mainland Spain.

The smugglers were charging each person up to 9,000 euros for the boat crossings from Spain’s North African enclave to La Linea near Gibraltar.

The migrants were put up in safe houses or hidden in garages before being taken to the vessels due to transport them across the Mediterranean where other gang members were waiting for them.

Mariners experienced in high-speed navigation are said to have received large sums of money to pilot the boats.

By packing migrants into the small boats, police say the smuggling gangs were making 56,500 euros for a single crossing.

Two alleged people smugglers were arrested in the aftermath of the July 30 ‘invasion’ of Ceuta when an estimated 72,500 migrants who were mostly North Africans and sub-Saharan Africans managed to swim to EU soil from Morocco.

Reports at the time described a “wave of people” reaching the coastline in and around the southern Spanish port city of Algeciras and the border town of La Linea.

Confirming the latest arrests, a spokesman for Spain’s National Police said: “Five people have been arrested in two investigations carried out in Ceuta and La Linea.

“The suspects used small boats to clandestinely transport migrants from Ceuta to mainland Spain, seriously endangering their safety and charging up to 9,000 euros.

“On one of the crossings, seven people travelled crammed together for five hours in a boat barely five metres long and two metres wide, without life jackets or adequate safety equipment, and which eventually ran out of fuel.”

Offering more details of the money migrants dreaming of a new life in Europe paid to reach the Spanish mainland and the way the people smugglers worked, the police force said: “The investigation began after a speedboat-type vessel was found abandoned on a rocky outcrop in the coastal area of Benzu in Ceuta.

“It showed signs and damage consistent with high-speed navigation and had run aground.

“The investigation discovered members of the organisation used intermediaries responsible for recruiting people in an irregular situation who had reached Ceuta late last month and offered to transport them from Ceuta to mainland Spain in exchange for approximately 9,000 euros.

“The migrants were housed in homes, garages or other holding locations until they were taken to the meeting point with the boat.

“The gang used support vehicles to carry out the journeys discreetly, attempting to avoid areas under police surveillance.

“Once the boat arrived from mainland Spain, the migrants were boarded and the sea crossing to mainland territory began, where other members of the group were responsible for receiving and subsequently dispersing the migrants.

“The organisation also had people responsible for piloting the boats who were paid large sums of money. The pilots were selected for their experience in high-speed navigation and their ability to carry out evasive manoeuvres and evade police controls.

“The operation culminated in the arrest of four people, two of them in Ceuta and two others in La Línea.

“In a second investigation, officers established the alleged involvement of a man in a sea crossing carried out on 14 August, in which seven people were transported from Ceuta to the mainland coast in a small boat without minimum safety conditions.

“The seven occupants were intercepted at around 4am in a beach area known as El Burgo, in La Linea, after spending approximately five hours at sea and travelling nearly 40 kilometres from Ceuta.

“A witness revealed that the organiser charged 8,000 euros per person to arrange illegal transfers from Ceuta, obtaining an estimated profit of 56,000 euros on a single journey with seven occupants.

“The passengers, crammed into a boat five metres long and two metres wide, without safety measures, were left adrift in the Strait of Gibraltar.

“Investigators also established the absence of life jackets, the lack of adequate signalling and rescue equipment and the presence of people with little or no ability to swim.

“The journey took place at night, with the passengers remaining at sea for approximately five hours and travelling nearly 40 kilometres in open waters from Ceuta to the mainland coast.

“According to witness statements, dense fog occurred during the journey, making navigation difficult and considerably reducing the chances of being located by other vessels in the event of an emergency.

“The weather conditions, the state of the boat and the absence of safety equipment significantly increased the danger during the crossing.

“The passengers also had to endure the cold caused by their wet clothes and water and waves entering the boat.”