The Alicante Provincial Court has sentenced a man to two years and six months in prison for captaining a boat that attempted to illegally transport 18 migrants, including four minors, from Algeria to the Alicante coast. The vessel had to be rescued after running adrift and without fuel during the crossing.
The events date back to 9th April, when someone spotted the boat around 4:00 PM off the coast of Calpe. According to the court ruling, the vessel had departed before 1:00 AM from a cove in Tipasa, Algeria. Its occupants had paid approximately 4,500 euro for the journey.
On board were 14 adult males and four minors, all Algerian nationals except for one Moroccan. The boat was seven metres long and only seated six people. Therefore, most of the passengers had to stand for the journey.
The boat lacked safety measures
The court ruling states that the vessel lacked adequate safety equipment for the crossing. Furthermore, it was equipped with 20 25-litre fuel canisters but ultimately ran out of fuel, and its occupants had to be rescued.
The ruling also states that the organisers of the trip confiscated the passengers’ mobile phones before departure to prevent them from recording during the journey. They were also given instructions: if intercepted upon arrival in Spain, they were to say that they had all piloted the boat.
The accused admitted the facts before the trial
The defendant admitted during the preliminary hearing that he was the one operating the vessel using the GPS on his mobile phone, despite not having any boating licence. He also admitted that he was the one who gave instructions to the other occupants.
The defendant admitted to the facts following a plea agreement with the prosecution. The Alicante Provincial Court has thus issued a final conviction for a crime against the rights of foreign citizens.
