The Mossos d'Esquadra arrest an imam from Figueres for child abuse.
The police have acted on complaints from the Muslim community and for now the accused is not being investigated for crimes of terrorism or radicalization.
Fig treesThe Mossos d'Esquadra (Catalan police) have arrested an imam from the Marca del Ham neighborhood of Figueres for mistreatment of minors who attended the mosque he led. According to police sources, he used a rigid cane or an open hand to beat children who attended the religious center to pray and learn Arabic. After the incidents occurred several times, it was the families of the neighborhood's Muslim community who alerted the police and removed him from his duties.
The arrest took place on Wednesday, July 9, and the imam was later released, although the Catalan police continue to investigate him while judicial proceedings are underway. Meanwhile, the National Police, which handles immigration matters, is considering whether to expel him from the country. He is being investigated for crimes of physical and psychological coercion, mistreatment, and injuries to minors attending the madrasa, for acts that allegedly took place between October 2024 and May 2025.
car repair shops. Neighborhood residents who prefer to remain anonymous explain to ARA that it is an unmarked garage, with a sign in Arabic covered with tape and a closed interior courtyard at the back, through which worshippers usually enter.
Police sources rule out this being a case of religious radicalization dangerous to national security, and he is not charged with any crimes of inciting hatred or terrorism.
"Too radical" stance
The Marca del Ham neighborhood is the most disadvantaged and run-down in Figueres. It lives away from the daily life of the center of the Empordà capital, with a few streets of apartment blocks and local businesses surrounded by fields and industrial warehouses, set back to the west of the municipality in the direction of Vilatenim.
The owners of the establishment have no direct contact with the Figueres City Council, nor is there a spokesperson for the mosque willing to comment to explain how the families' complaint and the expulsion came about. However, some individual residents not only attribute accusations of physical or psychological abuse to the imam, but also criticize him for having an overly radical religious stance. For example, he forced girls to wear veils even if they didn't want to.
The imam under investigation is the third mosque within a few meters of this poor neighborhood: very close by is the Rahma Mosque, where the African community prays, who knew nothing about the accusations against the detained imam. In an industrial area close to the wastewater treatment plant is the Al-Imam Warsh, where, months ago, the imam Mohamed Azougah, of Moroccan origin, served. who was expelled from Spain in January for spreading, in this case, radicalizing speeches considered dangerous to public safety.
