The National Police in Ibiza has arrested three Algerian citizens, aged 25, 32 and 35, as alleged perpetrators of crimes against the rights of foreign citizens and favoring illegal immigration.
The arrests took place on January 26 and 27, after five “cab pateras” with a total of 92 immigrants on board arrived at the coasts of Ibiza in less than 24 hours.
The “cab patera” mode
According to the investigation carried out by the Local Brigade of Foreigners and Borders in Ibiza, the detainees operated within a human trafficking network that used the modus operandi of “cab patera”. This system consists of the use of high-powered and high-capacity boats, skippered by people with experience in navigation, which transfer immigrants from the coasts of Algeria to Ibiza. Once they have disembarked, the skiff returns to the point of origin, allowing several journeys to be made in a short time, which represents a high economic benefit for the criminal organization. The arrested skippers tried to return to Algeria, but the strong storm and the swell caused by the storm Herminia prevented their escape, thus facilitating their identification and capture by the agents.
Two of the detainees had previous convictions in Spain
Two of the three detainees already had police records in Spain, which reinforces the hypothesis that they had previously been involved in similar activities. The National Police is keeping the investigation open to detect and dismantle other immigrant smuggling networks, which are operating with increasing sophistication and with migrants of various African nationalities.
