Up to 9,000 euros: what the mafias charge to transfer migrants from Ceuta

BarcelonaIn a straight line between Ceuta and Algeciras or La Línea de la Concepción, there are about 30 kilometers and, by ferry, the journey does not take more than an hour and a bit. But the humanitarian crisis following the massive influx on July 30 and 31 has turned these journeys into a lucrative business for mafias, which take advantage of the desperation of migrants living in hardship in Ceuta and charge them up to 9,000 euros per person to board a makeshift raft or inflatable boat. Although the route has lost the importance it had in the 90s due to police pressure and Moroccan control, the latest data from the Ministry of the Interior indicate a 16% increase in irregular maritime entries to the Peninsula, while departures to the Canary Islands are down 60%, awaiting what will happen from autumn onwards when sea conditions improve.

The National Police have arrested five individuals who are part of two organizations dedicated to the illicit trafficking of people from Ceuta to the Peninsula. All of them are charged with belonging to a criminal organization and facilitating irregular immigration. Two of the arrests took place in La Línea de la Concepción (Cádiz) and two more in Ceuta, as reported by the police force in a statement.

The lead that led the agents to the detainees was the location of a speed boat stranded in a rocky area of the coast of Benzú, in Ceuta. Following the inspection, it was determined that it had been used recently, but no migrants had boarded it. Before embarking, the migrants who had paid the 9,000 euros were housed in houses or garages until they were transferred to the meeting point to set sail. Once in the Peninsula, a group was waiting for them and distributed them.

In the early morning of August 14, a very rudimentary boat was found with seven people on board as they were about to reach the beach of La Línea de la Concepción, after having spent five hours at sea without the minimum safety conditions, neither with life jackets nor signaling devices. One of the witnesses explained that the trip organizer had charged 8,000 euros for a single journey. An astronomical profit.