Migrant-Smuggling Network Dismantled in Alicante and Murcia

A criminal organization involved in transporting Algerian migrants across the Mediterranean to Spain via speedboats has been dismantled in a joint operation between the National Police and the Tax Agency's Customs Surveillance Service in Alicante and Murcia. Five individuals were arrested, and two vessels were seized during the investigation.

The suspects are also under scrutiny for the severe injuries sustained by a 15-year-old migrant who was struck by a boat's propeller while attempting to swim to safety. The operation began in early July after the arrival of a speedboat carrying at least 24 Algerian nationals, including four minors, on the coast of Murcia. Police and Customs Surveillance investigators collaborated to identify the alleged captains, locate hidden and modified vessels, and track their movements after completing crossings.

The group frequently altered the boats' names, registration details, and markings to avoid detection. During a subsequent interception, a speedboat off the Murcia coast was found waiting for fuel from another vessel involved in illegal fuel smuggling. The crew ordered the passengers to jump into the sea without life jackets or survival equipment, leaving them in open water.

One of the migrants was struck by the propeller, sustaining serious injuries requiring surgery. The investigation also uncovered the dangers faced by the abandoned passengers, with several requiring resuscitation after swallowing seawater due to their inability to swim. Some sustained first and second-degree burns to their legs and buttocks from petrol spills inside the boat.

The search led to the arrest of a fifth suspect allegedly involved in supplying fuel to the organization's vessels at sea. Police seized additional weapons and a semi-rigid inflatable boat with a high-powered engine during the raids. The five suspects face charges such as membership in a criminal organization, facilitating illegal immigration, smuggling, assault, disobeying law enforcement officers, and possessing flammable, explosive, or incendiary substances.

Migrants were charged between €6,000 and €10,000 for the journey from Algeria to Spain, with more than 20 passengers potentially carried per crossing. The organization is suspected of transporting drugs between Algeria and Spain via return journeys, and it possessed advanced technical and logistical resources, including satellite communication equipment.

One of the seized vessels was a rigid-hulled speedboat measuring approximately 12 meters, powered by two 300-horsepower outboard engines, and estimated to be worth over €160,000.