Spanish police have uncovered a criminal gang that offered migrants passage across the Strait of Gibraltar by jet ski, charging 6,000 euros for the 10-minute ride from the coast of Tangier in Morocco to Cadiz or Malaga in Spain's southern Andalusia region.
Police arrested five people for human trafficking. The group was using the Spanish enclave of Ceuta as its base. The activity supposedly took place daily, in which two people were transported on each jet ski for a 10-minute ride at most, after having paid between 5,000 and 6,000 euros for the transport.
According to investigators, migrants generally paid half of the fee prior to departure and the other half on arrival. Once the jet skis arrived at the coast of Cadiz or Malaga, the migrants were left to disembark in the water close to the cliffs, where they could then walk to the beaches and blend in among beachgoers on the shore.
Traffickers' base in Spanish enclave of Ceuta
The traffickers used the Spanish enclave of Ceuta, where the investigation began, as their base. The group's trafficking trips also used the Spanish port of Algeciras, in the Cadiz province, as an arrival point. Here, after arrival, migrants were transferred to homes where they were held for hours or an entire night, prior to paying off their remaining debt with the group and being released.
Investigators said the criminal network was extensive and well organized, with members stationed as lookouts along the route, whose job was to make sure migrants didn't attempt to evade the organization before paying off their debt.Three of the five arrested were stopped by agents in Algeciras, with the remaining two stopped in Cadiz. The magistrate heading the investigation has issued additional warrants for two other suspected members of the organization who remain at large.