Foreign National Arrested for Child Abandonment in Guipúzcoa
In a recent incident that has raised significant concern, the Spanish National Police have arrested a foreign national, a university professor from Morocco, for abandoning his two minor children in Guipúzcoa. The children were subsequently transferred to two different shelters operated by the local government. This situation unfolded as part of the ongoing efforts by the authorities to address the growing issue of unaccompanied foreign minors arriving in Spain.
According to the central government delegation in Euskadi, officers from the National Police's Provincial Brigade of Foreigners and Borders in Gipuzkoa took action in accordance with their responsibilities regarding the registration of unaccompanied foreign minors (MENAs). The two children were registered as MENAs and were placed in protective custody while the necessary communication was made to the juvenile prosecution service. This operation was conducted under the framework of 'Operation Zaugarria,' which aims to manage the increasing influx of foreign minors into national territory.
The authorities noted a disturbing trend in which foreign minors are brought into Spain by their parents, only to be abandoned shortly thereafter. These parents often lead their children to police stations or shelters, claiming that they are in a vulnerable situation, thereby prompting public institutions to assume their guardianship. In this case, the police were able to interview the two Moroccan siblings, both minors, who had been placed under the care of residential resources in Gipuzkoa.
During their interviews, the minors disclosed that they had arrived in Spain with their father, who accompanied them to Bilbao with a full understanding of the procedures they would need to follow upon their arrival. They indicated that their father was with them until the day they presented themselves to the National Police as minors in need of protection, at which point he returned to Morocco. The siblings also mentioned that they had initially been placed in a shelter in Biscay but were advised by fellow countrymen to move to San Sebastián, leading them to leave their initial facility and seek assistance in Gipuzkoa.
Furthermore, the minors revealed that they were financially dependent on their father, who works as a biology professor at a university in Morocco, indicating they were not without resources. However, they believed that moving to Spain would provide them with better opportunities for their future. Following these revelations, police learned that the father had returned to Spain, specifically to Algeciras, prompting them to contact him. He was summoned to the police station on March 12.
After completing their investigations, the Gipuzkoa government, which is responsible for the guardianship of the minors, was informed to carry out the necessary administrative procedures. Upon the father's arrival in San Sebastián, he was arrested on suspicion of committing two counts of child abandonment. After the legal formalities were concluded, he expressed a desire to take custody of his children. Consequently, in collaboration with the Gipuzkoa government and the residential resources of Zabalduz Segura 2 and IRSE Arrasate, a voluntary family reunification was arranged, allowing the siblings to leave with their father.
As reported by eldebate.com.
