A 28-year-old man of Algerian origin has entered provisional prison after being arrested in Ibiza as the alleged perpetrator of a crime of involving illegal immigration .
The Ibiza National Police, which arrested the man last week, has verified that the existence of different organized groups related to the trafficking of immigrants from the north of Algeria to the Balearic Islands .
Within the organization, some are in charge of finding migrants and collecting the money and others with nautical knowledge, manage the boat for the trip to the Balearic coast.
The event took place on May 30, when Salvamento Marítimo had to rescue a boat that was adrift east of La Mola, in Formentera, after running out of fuel. The boat was occupied by sixteen men of Algerian origin, who were transferred to the port of Ibiza, where they received first aid and were arrested for illegal entry into the country.
The boat of about six meters in length, could not be towed due to weather conditions as only one engine was functioning, circumstances that put its occupants at serious risk.
After making a statement to the occupants of the boat, it was confirmed that one of them was responsible for navegating the vessel, and had supplied the occupants with water and vests. Apparently, this person would be part of an organization that is dedicated to making trips by boat from Algeria to the Balearic Islands.
Payment of 1,250 euros for trip
In this case and based on the statements of the rest of the passengers on the boat, they would have paid an approximate amount of 1,250 euros, and their initial intention was to reach the coast of Mallorca, but when they ran out of fuel the ship was adrift, so they requested help from the emergency services.
For all this, the agents of the Ucrif of the National Police in Ibiza proceeded to arrest the employer, as the alleged perpetrator of a crime against the rights of foreign citizens, and a proposal for the occupants to return to their country has also been processed.
Detainee had entered Spain three other times
The detainee had already entered the national territory irregularly on three other occasions, providing different identity data on each trip, to make police work more difficult. This is the “modus operandi” of the patterns of the boats used by human trafficking mafias.
During the year 2021, six boats have been intercepted in the Pitiusas, and after the corresponding investigations, the Ucrif has arrested two of the skippers of these boats.